Half-Prince and a Wish
by The Omnipresent Sage
Summary: With Schneizel growing in power and influence within the Empire, the Emperor looks for someone who can challenge him. Who better than the son he disowned and exiled to Japan?
1. Chapter 1

**Area 11**

 **Viceroy Palace**

Clovis found it to be a massive annoyance to have someone always sticking up his nose in his business. It was especially a problem when it was the Prime Minister doing it. Clovis could never really get used to the idea of having his brother always appearing in on the lines, enquiring about how he was governing the area.

He hated how Schneizel was always on his back.

Did the man think he was that incompetent? Sure things were not that great and he wasn't that much of a strategist like his brother but he was still a prince and the governor of Area 11. Schneizel had no business trying to instruct him on how to oversee things in this area, even if he was the Prime Minister of the Empire.

He didn't have all the glory that their sister Cornelia has in the battlefield, and didn't come out in white roses and smelling nice in very situation he faced like the man, but he was still doing something here in this area. Schneizel should just mind his own business and let him rule as he sees fit. The country wasn't facing problems he could not fight, and the economy wasn't sluggish.

Despite all his thoughts, Clovis smiled at his brother, "What can I do for you this time, brother?" The third Prince of Britannia asked in a calm tone, yet leaking some edges in it that Schneizel was able to pick up on very quickly but did not comment.

"Can't I call to see how my brother is doing?" Schneizel asked with a thin smile. Knowing how Clovis was doing wasn't his purpose for calling but there was nothing wrong with seeing how the other brother was doing. You needed to keep in contact because you never knew which piece would come in handy one day.

Still, knowing the kind of person Clovis was, Schneizel was almost certain that he would never be able to involve his brother in the game of brain games he played. They just did not suit him and he would be devoured quickly if he entered the ring. Still, Clovis did have certain qualities that could come in handy one day.

He still wanted to see the man do well in his position as Viceroy and even if his 'advices' do end up getting the prince rewards from homeland, he would never lay claim to anything. He was certain that his brother would bask in the glory and play his spectators with a play that would have all eyes glued on him.

"You can, but there haven't been those kinds of calls since I left homeland to become Viceroy of this area," Clovis said.

"We must restore tradition then," Schneizel said with a smile. "So, tell me brother, how have you been?"

Clovis was sure that his brother was asking that on purpose, perhaps just to annoy him. It bothered him that he could never match up to his brother. He had come here to make a name for himself and rise out of the shadow of the white prince, but the man just could not keep away.

The Governor leaned to the side, resting his head on the palm of his left hand, with his eyes staring at the large screen that had Schneizel's annoying smile on it. "I have been good, then?"

Schneizel seemed to sigh, it was barely visible. Clovis just went with a guess. "Father is very worried about the level of terrorism that has been occurring under your watch since you took over. Area 11 has not been stable and given the amount of time you have had on the job…" the Prime Minister paused for a moment. "He is starting to think that perhaps you're incapable to shutting down the terrorists…"

Clovis lost his smile for a moment and then smiled brilliantly. Even Schneizel was slightly surprised at how his brother was able to switch on the masks. It was something else that he admired about the brother of his, but he should at least learn to keep them in check rather than having to dig deep to put them back.

"Tell father that he does not need to worry, Prime Minister. I, Clovis la Britannia will get rid of the terrorists," Clovis said confidently with a wave of his right hand.

When it came to, perhaps, false promises, Clovis was really attuned to delivering an award winning performance when proclaiming them. Of course this was a serious matter and he would have Bartley try to solve it quickly before Schneizel decides to send Cornelia into his area.

If his sister ends up coming here, he would be shipped back to Pendragon, Clovis was certain of it. He didn't want to return home like a disgraced soldier who fled with his tail between his legs in the face of a little mountain.

For his beloved reputation, that kind of a stain wasn't wanted.

Schneizel smiled, "I'm not talking to you as Prime Minister, Clovis; I am talking to you as your brother…" the prince paused just to allow the words to sink in. "In any case, I have already assured father that you will not disappoint. If there is anything that you need just call me, and I will lend you my hand. No one even needs to know about it."

But his pride would take a hit.

Clovis would rather avoid that now, not when he wasn't backed against a wall. It wasn't that he did not trust his brother. It was just that he did not wish to owe anyone anything. He wanted to do things himself to get the credit he deserves. The Emperor would never acknowledge him until he does something worthy in his eyes.

"I will be sure to call you if I do need the help," Clovis said, a bit nonchalantly. "Anything else?" Schneizel shook his head lightly. "Take care brother," having said that, Clovis cut off the communication line.

He sighed as he leaned back to his throne like chair. Perhaps if he had found Lelouch, things would have been a little better. They used to get along just fine with the brother of his. But Lelouch was a little gifted and Schneizel had liked him the most because they could play the crappy games of chess in a way that would please the man.

He could never give the man a good match, not that he was ever going to play the game again. He didn't even hold any love for it.

But still, he was sure he would have convinced Lelouch to join his side. He would be the Viceroy and Lelouch would be Sub-viceroy and they would rule this area in ways that he liked. Oh well, things hadn't gone according to plan when he could not find his brother and sister but it was alright. He would manage things in his way.

 **With Schneizel**

"When did you last speak to His Majesty?" Kanon asked, standing beside the white prince.

"About two weeks ago," Schneizel said. Knowing where his right hand man as going with his question, the prince added. "I just needed something to make him wake up a little."

There had been no concerns from the Emperor. The man hadn't seemed concerned about what was happening in area 11… well at least that was for now; there would be a day he would be asking questions. Just to be prepared, Clovis would need to be doing his job on his toes.

The Emperor would no doubt think of replacing him if he thought he was incompetent. For Clovis, that would be shameful and he was sure that his loving public would mock him and it would break him. To avoid that, Schneizel was merely moving things in a way that would work best for both of them in the end.

"When he first got to Area 11, Clovis was most focused on finding Lelouch but when that proved fruitless, he retreated. Still, there has been a rise of terrorism in his Area. You must not forget that other areas are watching. We simply cannot allow an Area to have that level of disruptive military actions. It would just give others motivation to try it," the white prince added. "Lelouch would have been doing a better job…"

"You think so?"

"I know so…" Schneizel said. "Clovis could never match up to Lelouch's intelligence and I'd thought that he would grow up into someone who could match me. Even at a very delicate age, he could force a draw with me in a game of chess… it is a pity that he died…"

 **Meanwhile, with the thought dead prince…**

It was remarkable that just one single Empire could dominate the world. Britannia brought fears into many of its enemies and opponents. The empire led by Charles zi Britannia crushed any who dared stand in its way. Lelouch was also a victim of the Empire's wrath.

The EU was the only union left standing with both its feet, but it would not be for long, not with Schneizel leading the charges.

He hadn't done anything wrong to incur the wrath though. He had merely requested that the man who made himself to be his father by name do something in the murder of his mother, but he had been thrown into the wolves den. Worse, the man had a leash on the wolves and he was thrown in to be devoured.

But Lelouch was a survivor. He had survived when his homeland invaded Japan. He had survived the bloody gruesome war that left the country damaged and many Japanese crying for it to all just end. When it did end, they were left staring at the barrel of Britannia's knightmare frames.

Still, Lelouch snaked through everything and avoided the war, even the Emperor's people who were no doubt looking for him. The world had thought the man wouldn't invade a country where his children resided, but he proved them wrong and Britannia did not weep. He and his beloved sister were just commoners who had lived the lives of aristocracy because the loathsome blood of the Emperor diluted their system.

The thought of the Britannian aristocracy made his blood boil. Lelouch would honestly abolish those titles if he took the chance to topple the Emperor from his throne. He did recognize that he would have to go through Schneizel el Britannia, but nothing was impossible.

Rivalz nudged Lelouch on his shoulder, seeing the black haired was looking absent minded with his right hand resting over his head. He was still in the middle of a chess game. How could he be so casual during this time when the stakes were so high?

"If you're going to sleep, don't you think you should the end match first?" Rivalz asked. Besides, it was already time for them to leave the place and return to school before someone starts calling. It would probably be Shirley who does call. Despite everything, Milly never bothered about their behaviour to bunk classes. It was a curious case, but he never questioned.

Lelouch managed to smile as one eye danced around the chess board while the other moved about the noble – who looked annoyed, perhaps even frustrated. He could understand. He wasn't even taking the match seriously and he had expected a bit of a challenge from the man.

"Just three more moves…" the former prince said idly as he moved his king.

And three moves later, it was checkmate. The noble stared for a few moments before shaking his head. To lose a game to a child and this badly: He hadn't even managed to take more pieces from the brat and the ones he managed to take were just pawns.

The man lay back to his chair and folded his hands. He stared at the brat before speaking. "You don't find many young ones playing this good. Who taught you?"

Lelouch merely smiled. "It is all in the head. The only things you need to be taught are the rules and understanding of how the pieces move. The rest is up to your mind to strategize on how you play and move your pieces. Most likely, if you don't possess a strategic mind, you won't be any good…" the former prince explained lightly.

"You have a sharp mind, are you willing to do some 'harmless' work for me?" the noble asked. "I play some high stakes games and I'm bleeding a lot of money. If you can play for me, I can triple what I am going to give you now…"

Lelouch smiled. That was a first. He had never received an offer like that before, but he wasn't going to take it like that. Sure, he thought he would be able to pull through, but playing in a game of such high stakes opened the door for more people to know. When it was private like this, he could get away without people knowing his identity.

Who knew who he would meet in such a game?

"Give me your contact details and I will contact you after I think about it," Lelouch said to the man.

The man snapped his fingers and a man holding a briefcase walked over and handed over the case to Rivalz, but the card with the contact detail was handed to Lelouch.

Lelouch said his farewell and departed from the house with Rivalz holding the case of money. He didn't even to check it to see if the man had paid him real money or the full amount. Nobles and their pride wouldn't allow them to rob him. They always paid in full.

"Are you really going to take that job?" Rivalz asked Lelouch as the two rode back to Ashford Academy on his bike. It could be dangerous and he didn't want his friend to be involved in anything that would put both of them at risk.

Lelouch listened to the sound of the highway road for a few seconds before mustering a response to his friend. "Of course not," the former prince said with a bit of nonchalance as he threw the piece of paper away.

The black haired said nothing further as he turned his attention towards the Britannian part of the country. It had been rebuilt to suit the high standards of the so-called superior race. They had flocked into the country like cockroaches running after leftovers. They had made this country theirs and now owned it.

The Japanese or numbers were now living in poverty, slums while the Britannians milked the riches of the country. The cruel system that devoured the weak and enriched the strong. Lelouch hated that system. He especially hated the man who preached it with such passion that you'd think he'd been breast fed the ideal and the ideal was imprinted to his very DNA.

Perhaps it was…

Back when he was enjoying the life of a prince, he had never looked at things in this way. Perhaps it was because he never saw it as he was shielded from seeing the ugly face to the world by the high walls of Aires Villa.

Maybe he was merely thinking about it now because his sister was weak. Her dream was a beautiful world where there was no discrimination against the weak. She wanted the perfect world where everyone could be treated as an equal.

If she could see that the numbers were treated as just numbers not humans; they were just a count – remove the other and you could still add another one – her heart would crumble. His poor little sister. Well, he had to protect her from this world and he wanted to see that perfect world come to a reality.

But how would he go about that?

"Sometimes I worry about you buddy…" Rivalz said. Lelouch had not been responding when he spoke and he could only guess the black haired was once again lost in his thoughts. It was happening a lot more regularly these days.

"Hmm?"

"This is what I am talking about…" Rivalz said with a shake of his head. "Are you having relationship problems? Though it would be cruel if you got a girl without even talking to me and I imagine Shirley will be heartbroken when she does find out about it…"

Lelouch raised an eye brow in question. "What are you talking about?"

 **Pendragon**

The Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire was sitting on his throne, head resting on the palm of his left hand, thinking. He didn't really care about the trivial wars occurring around the world, but he did need his empire to conquer so that he could get closer to his grand ambition.

Admittedly, life was a little boring now with Marianne only making temporary visits to him. He had his brother, but his brother had already betrayed him. Dealing with that could wait; the plan was the ultimate goal.

A possessed Knight of Six walked into the throne room from behind, smiling. "You look as if you are plotting something, Charles," the young girl said.

The emperor didn't change his posture as he responded. "I'm thinking of something," he admitted in a quiet tone.

"What? Everything with the plan is going smoothly…"

"The Empire," Charles said. "I have been keeping Schneizel busy by having him do all the work while I handle important things. He has been doing a rather good job without straining himself. If he is left unchecked, the truth might dawn on him. Out of all my children, he is the only one who could be a problem."

"Cornelia?"

"Cornelia is a soldier and will do as told," the Emperor was quick to say.

She also loved her empire so much that she wouldn't even do anything against it. Besides, he could control her by just saying Euphemia. That was her one weakness, but it was a different matter with Schneizel. The Prime Minister couldn't be controlled by those means.

Admittedly, the Emperor didn't have any hold on Schneizel. The man just did not do anything stupid because he knew who he was dealing with. Charles didn't become the king of Britannia by being stupid.

"Are you that worried?"

The Emperor let out a small snort at the question. It was unbecoming for a king, but it couldn't be helped at the situation. "Schneizel just has things easy and that isn't fun at all. There isn't anyone to challenge him. Cornelia is just focused on dismantling her opponents and can be disabled quiet easily."

"There really isn't anyone to challenge him," Marianne said, but then frowned. "You're not thinking of bringing back our son, are you?"

 **Ashford Academy**

 **Student Council Room**

Lelouch was sitting alone in the council room, going through the internet looking at things that were occurring around the other countries and Area's Britannia has monopolized. Perhaps it was the paranoia but he always believed that it was best to be prepared about everything and that meant knowing more about his enemy – Britannia.

Life was going smoothly at this stage and he was still able to take care of Nunnally's needs with the money he made from gambling, but he considered the fact that it would not last forever. He did not see himself doing this in the foreseeable future and besides, he still needed to plan for his revenge.

To get the Charles, he needed to get through his layer of protection. Lelouch didn't care how big the country was. He had been studying Britannia's military might over the years and what he has come to realize is that the country relied too much on its numbers rather than quality.

They didn't have too many quality commanders to lead their army. Sure Cornelia was capable and was the best the Empire had to offer in Military, but that was all. He could not count the slithering snake in the name of Schneizel as the man was used by the Emperor to ensnare people with his silver tongue.

The thought that trying to fight Britannia was nothing short of a suicidal mission wasn't an obstacle to Lelouch that stopped him from plotting. He did not have the necessary tools to take the steps now, but the opportunity would represent itself and he would gain his revenge against that loathsome man standing atop of Britannia.

Milly walked into the room and silently closed the door behind her. She even considered locking it to give herself and Lelouch some time, but she decided against it. There would be no one to budge in the room in the next minutes and it wasn't like she had to worry about anyone overhearing them talk about classified information.

The blonde student council president walked over to Lelouch, who had his eyes glued to the screen of his laptop. It wasn't for the first time she was catching him in this position, looking through Britannia's military actions in other parts of the land.

It made her curious and even despite being herself; Milly could never bring herself to ask anything about it because Lelouch's history was a touchy subject that has at times brought out some emotional burst outs and darkness in him that frightened her.

The blonde settled on the desk in front of Lelouch and folded her hands across the former prince with her eyes firmly glued on his face. It took a few moments for Lelouch's eyes to meet hers and when he did, he smiled for moment, but the smiled dropped when he saw that she wasn't smiling.

"If I didn't know better, I'd think you were planning on returning to the fold of Britannia's imperial court," Milly said in a somewhat of a strong tone that was mirrored by some by mixed emotions – which Lelouch didn't seem to catch.

The former prince scoffed in distaste at the thought of returning to that cursed place. The imperial court was infested by vultures who would no doubt try to eat him alive. He was the son of a mere commoner and Lelouch really didn't like them. Really, if the EU dropped a bomb in Pendragon, he would take a camera and run all the way to the mother city just to cover the story.

"I can't imagine myself walking before those greedy snakes," Lelouch in a whisper.

Would his sister even survive in that kind of a place? They would certainly look at her as if she was prey. He would not allow it of course, but still, he did not see himself returning there just to be used by the Emperor – he didn't know if he would be able to hold himself from lunging at the man to strangle him with his bare hands if he was forced in his presence.

He resented that man and the thought of him looking at him with those uncaring eyes, darkened his mood as it was now.

"I would love to see the looks on their faces when they do realize that I am alive though…" the prince thought with a wicked smile.

"You're thinking of revealing yourself? You have done everything in your power to hide your identity and since it has been really long, only those from your family would be able to recognize you," Milly said. She would be surprised if the black haired was thinking of making his survival known. It would certainly undo every effort he put in trying to hide from the Emperor – the man who he believed was trying to kill him.

Well, it did look that way. What kind of a father sends war machines with only one purpose of destroying into a land when his children are in that land? They had still been young, and had been abandoned, to fend for themselves. They had survived though.

Milly could only imagine how hard it must have been for Lelouch to carry a blind and crippled innocent girl around a warzone, while looking over his shoulder for people who might be coming after their lives.

Perhaps this was why she could at least understand some part of his righteous fury towards the Emperor.

"Don't be ridiculous, that thought hasn't even slipped my mind even in my worst nightmares," Lelouch said with a blank look on his face. "Something like that would put your family in trouble though. I have been hiding here, and considering how that man handles things, anything could happen."

Milly nodded in agreement. "Why do you spend time looking at this things. I thought you were over the life of royalty? Are you concerned about your siblings?"

Lelouch snorted. His beloved was Nunnally and perhaps the only other person was Euphemia. The others had their own deals with the devil. "Terrorist attacks have become common in this area, and Clovis has been unable to clamp it down. The JLF is doing the more damage though…" when the former prince paused, Milly quickly spoke.

"You're following these things quite well…"

Lelouch shrugged. "It's common news; anyone who watches the real news knows about it. Most Britannians are just ignorant of it, but I have to worry because if the heat increases in this country, the Emperor will send someone capable that will prove to be risky for me."

Another reason was that he did it to alleviate the boredom. School was boring to him, there was nothing that he didn't know and seriously, attending classes was just for formalities. He didn't need to go to class to pass the exams. If they would allow him, he would choose not to attend any classes.

"The more military actions occur around the country, the more journalists do stories and cover things. One, day, you might even be seen by someone who knows you, and if that happens and the Emperor finds out, you'd be in trouble," Milly concluded, earning a nod from Lelouch. "It would be sad if it happens…"

Lelouch nodded again, but said nothing further.

Silence settled in for a few moments before Milly spoke. "My grandfather is trying to arrange for a marriage for me to nobleman to reclaim the family's noble status…"

Lelouch stared at the blonde for a long minute: there was nothing in her expression that clearly spelled what she thought about this whole matter. What did he expect though? This was Milly; she could be unreadable when she wanted to be. She was also a difficult one to crack. You could never know her secrets unless she willingly divulged them.

He knew about this whole operation. Maybe it had been the paranoia in him that thought the family would think of returning him to Pendragon and fix him up with Milly just to regain their status, but if the plan had been there, it was crushed when he informed them that the loathsome Emperor had sent people to kill him.

Still, what was so beautiful about being noble that Ruben would be willing to sacrifice his granddaughter just for it? The privileges, perhaps? Well, this was the game that aristocracy played in order to gain and regain their privileges.

"Once your life becomes familiar with a certain standard of life, it becomes difficult to live when that level has been stripped away from you. If you were privileged and suddenly you're forced to live without that status, you become lost because you simply don't know how to live without your past glory," Lelouch said in a thoughtful tone. "But your family has done well to survive…"

"It is just this academy, no more riches that would make it possible for the family to take care of both you and Nunnally without a scratch," Milly said. Not that she needed to be rich to live her life. She just needed to do what was best for the family – as was expected of her.

Growing up, she had known that she might possibly fall into this trap, but still not in this kind of situation. Well, this was the reality. Lelouch may have faced something like this if he had stayed as a Prince.

If she was being made to marry a prince and heir to the throne Lelouch, then she wouldn't have complained. But he was not a prince. He had renounced his claim to the throne and was just Lelouch Lamperouge, not vi Britannia.

"Is there anything I can to do help?" Lelouch asked. If she didn't want it, he would do his best to help her. Milly was a precious friend after all. How long has he known her?

Milly put on a strange expression on her face as she asked in a calm tone. "What can you do Lelouch?" It seemed like a curious question, but it was one that hit the prince hard.

What could he do?

He had nothing. He wasn't a prince, just living normally without any real influence in anything. Sure he could make money by gambling, but what could he do? The question that dragged him down wasn't necessarily 'what could he do' but 'who was he to think he could help her?' In this form, he was powerless.

If Clovis discovered him here, he would be screwed in every form of the word. In this form, there was nothing he could do to protect Milly. Worse of all, if the terrorists decided to use this academy and hold it hold hostage, he would be powerless to do anything.

He couldn't even run for two minutes without sweating.

How was he even going to get his revenge on the emperor if he couldn't even save Milly – that is if she wanted to be saved? What did he have that he could use? He had his mind and a chess board. In reality that translated to just mind, but he had no pawns, no queen, no bishops and no knights. He was powerless.

But his enemies had all the tools and just one word from that man could crush him.

Milly came to realize perhaps she had asked the wrong question and quickly tried to correct herself, but before she could say anything, Lelouch closed his laptop and stood up. "I didn't mean it in a bad way, Lelouch…"

The former prince shook his head. "It is alright…"

From where Milly stood, she could see it wasn't.

"What can I do, really, Milly?" The bitterness in his tone made Milly regret saying what she did. Perhaps she should have not said anything. The blonde merely watched Lelouch stalk away: possibly going to plot ways in which he could arm himself with power.

When Lelouch opened the door, Shirley was right outside. The girl gave him a look. "Lulu, you missed classes, again!"

Lelouch didn't say anything. He was much absorbed in his thoughts to even notice the girl or what she was saying. He just stalked away.

Shirley drew a confused look as she stepped into the student council offices and stared straight at Milly. "What-"

Milly didn't allow the girl to ask the question she was about to ask. She merely smiled slyly as she spoke in a teasing tone. "Did Shirley run all the way from class because she was worried about her dear Lulu?"

That was a better way to stop the girl from asking questions about things she didn't need to know. Perhaps she shouldn't have said something like that to Lelouch of all people. She knew how a part of his mind worked and whatever would be planned up now would be something that would get him power.

Lelouch was smart enough to plot schemes that would make her skin crawl. The former prince didn't even have any interest in everything that was around him, not school, not the feelings that some people, like Shirley offered to him. It wasn't to say he didn't care about friends – Milly knew that Lelouch cared for his friends.

"I was worried," Shirley responded firmly. "If Lulu doesn't attend classes, he will fail. He barely even passes!"

A thought sneaked into Milly's head – it wasn't that Shirley didn't make a fair point, but nothing was really going to change. Milly wasn't going to bother wasting her effort knowing that Lelouch saw school as something trivial. He had no plans to graduate and work for some company, and so for him, a school was a waste of time.

"Don't worry Shirley, Lulu won't fail," Milly said. "I know you're concerned that if he gets held up for not attending classes, you won't be his classmate anymore…" the blonde added with a wide smile

 **Later**

"Onii-sama," Nunnally greeted happily as her brother walked into their home. She could never mistake the sound of his footsteps for anyone. She didn't need to see to tell if her brother was back home… the sound gave it all away.

Lelouch's mood had been a little sour at his own lack of power, but upon seeing his sister smiling at him, he smiled and the dark cloud that had been following him disappeared without a trace. The former prince wished his sister could see how beautiful her smile was.

The former prince walked over to his sister with a smile of his own. Once he was close to her wheelchair, he knelt down and spoke. "Nunnally," he said softly. "How was your day?"

"It was great…" the girl went on to happily explain what she had done during the day while her brother listened carefully, watching her lips move up and down. Once she was done, Lelouch smiled.

"You had a lot fun with Sayako today," he said with a smile.

Nunnally nodded. She wanted to say something but her lips shut as she became thoughtful. "I almost forgot, Milly was here earlier looking for you…" the girl said in a strange tone. "Is there something wrong brother?"

"Nothing," Lelouch said with a smile. "What makes you say that?"

Nunnally considered telling her brother that his hands had twitched slightly as the mention of Milly and that the blonde had sounded a little strained when she found out that he had yet to return home and that she had said something about his cell being off.

"Nothing," Nunnally said with a smile. "I thought there was something up…"

"Don't worry yourself, Nunnally," the former prince said in a calm tone. He stood up, "I'm going to my room for a few moments. I will be back soon…"

Having said that, Lelouch walked away from his sister… when he arrived in his room, he shut the door and went to throw himself in his bed. He closed his eyes, facing up. It had been a long and challenging day. At least it wasn't boring like most days and he managed to go somewhere with his plan for revenge.

Lelouch's phone vibrated from his pocket and he took it out: unknown number.

"Hello…"

"Lelouch…"

The former prince froze in his bed as he was quick to recognise the cold and distant voice that had banished him and said his demand for his mother's murderer's to be brought justice a mere childish rant.

 **End**

 **I don't know if this will really become a story that I can pick up; it was just something I thought of and decided to write. There are stories in which Lelouch gets discovered by someone from the Imperial family, but I thought, what if the Emperor decides to call Lelouch?**

 **It would make up for an interesting story… or so I think.**

 **If I do decide to make something out of this, the pairing would obviously be Lelouch x Milly. I have always thought that Milly does love Lelouch and went on to do a little research about it. What would happen if I brought those two together into a marriage?**

 **There are a lot of things to consider, and I will see how my planning goes. If my mind enables me to add another chapter and another, then I can make a story.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

This was just wrong, right? The emperor shouldn't know he was alive. He had covered his tracks well enough, for the past years, he had lived his life without any incident that would alert the royal family, and there had not been anyone coming close to visit him. The fact that his half-brother was the governor of this area hadn't changed anything. He had continued to live under his alias.

Was he perhaps dreaming?

Maybe someone was playing a prank on him, acting like the Emperor. However, who would? Lelouch shook his head, killing off those thoughts. He would remember that bastard's voice even if he was deaf. There was no way he could mistake Charles with anyone else. It was just impossible.

Why was the man even calling him?

"You have done well trying to hide, Lelouch, but you were naïve to actually think that you could hide from me. I control the world's most powerful empire and have many countries under my feet; did you really think that you could hide from me?"

It sounded as if the man was mocking his attempts to hide. Lelouch felt so much anger that he trembled silently and when he spoke, he could not keep his righteous fury out of his tone. "I can cut off this line and disappear."

"What makes you think I don't have someone watching you now?" The Emperor asked rhetorically. "Don't do anything stupid. You have enjoyed your time away for long enough. Clovis will come and pick you up tomorrow."

The Emperor hung up.

Lelouch got up from the bed, holding his phone with both his hands. He glared at the phone murderously as if he was glaring at Charles zi Britannia. It was quite an illusion brought up by his danger or his eyes were deceiving him, but he was seeing the man's expressionless mask mocking him on the screen of the phone.

The former prince strangled the phone as if he was squeezing the life out of Charles zi Britannia. But the man's expressionless turned into a smile and Lelouch slammed the phone down the ground before letting out a hate filled scream.

He then went on to stomp the phone trying to break it into pieces. As he was doing that, he was cursing over and over again. Adding something along the lines of 'die Charles, die Charles!'

Childish perhaps, but who would comment on it?

When Sayako rushed into the room, thinking there was an intruder in the house, trying to do something to her master, she found the former royal pacing around the room, with his expression twitching from dark to contemplative. He didn't even notice her.

"Master Lelouch," Sayako called the former prince to get his attention.

Lelouch continued pacing around the room, thinking hard. What if he hides Nunnally and allow himself to be taken away? But the man had known that he was alive, it was possible that he knew that his beloved sister was alive as well. He had to do something to make sure that she did not go back to that place.

The Emperor had not said anything about her and Lelouch would not say anything. But what about Clovis? If the prince does catch a wind of her when he does get here, the man would no doubt try to flout having found his long lost brother. The fact that he had been hiding would not highlighted.

Questions would be asked; maybe he would fake a memory loss. He was announced as dead, having died in the war but now he would make a comeback. How would the Emperor try to solve that?

Well, Britannia's population was possessed with shameful ignorance; they would not even go that far, they would be either happy or furious that he was found alive. Whatever the Emperor would say or would make him say would be accepted without question.

"Master Lelouch," Sayako called again, this time her tone was a little high. She was beginning to worry about the prince. Something was surely not right. For the former prince to pace around like this, with a dark and calculative masks taking turns on his face, something was definitely wrong.

Lelouch's pacing came to a halt, and stared at Sayako for a long minute. "The Emperor just called…"

It was bitterly amusing in the way he said. Lelouch was able to recognize that and let out a bitter laugh. When did he think that a day would come when the Emperor would call him on his private cell? The very thought was ludicrous. He would have scoffed at the very thought.

But it had occurred.

Maybe he was in a world where the gods – if they existed – where playing a cruel trick on him. Where had he gone wrong? He had thought through everything and made contingency plans just to make sure that his identity remained hidden and no one ever found him.

If he had been found by someone of the royal family – who had just stumbled on him, he could have fled. However, the man had called him because he knew where he was. Cursed bastard. He could very well see himself strangling the man to death, with his own bear hands.

The thought made him smile cruelly.

Sayako made a serious look on her face. She could have thought that the former prince was joking, but he did not joke about the Emperor. If anything had to do with the man, it was death – a cruel death and curses.

She did not say a word though.

"He said Clovis will come tomorrow to get me," Lelouch added. "But knowing him, if that bastard tells him now, Clovis will be here within a few minutes with a horde of journalists and a tower for dramatic tears. He would certainly wish for the world to see a reunion with a thought dead prince and his half-brother."

"What about Nunnally?" Sayako asked. She was most concerned about the crippled princess. Lelouch could handle himself. Still, when it came to the Emperor, she did not know.

"He didn't say anything about her, but I am sure he knows she is still alive. At this very moment, I'm royally screwed," Lelouch said, a lot more calm than he was a few moments ago.

He refused to believe that the Emperor could see everything. Regardless of how powerful the man was, he could not see everything. It was a mere threat made to make him feel hopeless, but Lelouch would not fall to the trap.

Now that he thought about it, his plan to hide here had been flawed to begin with. How idiotic had he been to actually think he could hide here? The Ashfords had been supporters of his mother and they fled to this very country. Anyone with enough brains could have first looked at this place if they thought he had survived.

He should have just made more money and fled to another country!

"Sayako," Lelouch started. "I will think of something during the night, but I want you to promise me that you will protect Nunnally, no matter the cost. I will not simply twist and turn at every turn the Emperor demands, yet I won't do anything to risk Nunnally's safety."

"Protecting both of you is my service and I shall carry on that duty with my life."

Lelouch managed a smile. "Thank you, Sayako," he said. He knew he could trust her. She would not hurt Nunnally. She has been taking care if his sister since the Ashfords offered her to them. She was loyal.

But now he needed to inform Nunnally. How would he go about it then? How would his sister even react to it?

Lelouch slowly walked back to where he had left his sister. Sayako didn't follow from behind. Perhaps she thought it was best to give them some privacy, not that what needed to be talked about was anything private. It wasn't like she didn't know their situation.

Wasn't it something though? A Japanese woman called him master and served him with everything that she has even though he was a Britannian prince. When the Japanese see a Britannian prince, their blood boiled. Britannian royalty were deemed as scumbags who needed to be killed – they were hated. Yet this woman served him, and Lelouch didn't doubt her loyalty for even a second.

Why would he?

She was an honest woman who has been by Nunnally's side as far as he could remember. His sister really loved the woman and Lelouch couldn't see anyone else being by his sister for protection aside from her.

Nunnally was by herself, making another origami – another wish. Lelouch walked over to his beloved sister and knelt in front of her, "Nunnally," he started his tone a bit over the edge.

Nunnally was quick to recognize it "Is there something wrong, brother?"

Lelouch nodded slowly as if his sister could see it. "The Emperor called me," the former prince said venomously. Nunnally had to hold herself from wincing at the venom dripping from his tone. "He knows we are alive and said he was going to send Clovis to fetch me." Lelouch explained as slowly and calmly as he could.

Nunnally cocked her head to the side as she processed what her brother had said. "Does it mean that we get to 'see' the others again?" For a moment, she had forgotten about her brother's anger and just thought of happy memories.

The days she could see, running around Aries Villa with Euphemia by her side and Lelouch in front, crying for their mother and cursing Clovis for being a traitor; their mother would only sit and laugh. It had been fun, she had enjoyed those days, but now they were a distant memory.

She could no longer run as she used to, but the idea of meeting the others excited her.

Lelouch's grasp tightened slightly as he nodded. "Yes," he said. "Nunnally, I think you will be allowed to stay here and finish your school. I'm sure the moment Euphemia hears about this she will get on a plane to come to see you with Cornelia behind her, watching the surroundings like the devil."

Nunnally smiled; although Lelouch was trying to make a joke, his voice was cracking; he was not a happy person. Her smile turned sad slightly, "I'm sure you have nothing to worry about, brother."

"I hope so, Nunnally… I hope so…"

He said it for her sake; he knew he was going to hell.

 **The Following Morning**

"Fa-Your Majesty," Clovis managed to say stiffly as the Emperor appeared in the screen before him. He then waved his hands, to tell everyone in his office to disappear. No one needed to know what he spoke about with his father.

What did the man even want with him? Could it be because of what Schneizel had been saying the other day? If so, he would need a proper plan to deal with things. He could not lose face in front of his beloved father. The man could be unforgiving at times and he did not tolerate incompetence.

He had seen how the Emperor dealt with those who failed him. He could be cruel so much you'd think the people at his mercy were mere strangers, or just the numbers, but they were his children. Naturally, Clovis didn't allow that thought to bring out questions. His father was the best – at least that is what he chose to believe.

"It was brought to my attention that after Area 11 was defeated, and you became its Viceroy, you tried to look for Lelouch and his sister," the Emperor said.

It was no father and son moment, Clovis hadn't expected anything more. "Yes," the Third prince said. "Unfortunately I did not find them…" he sounded very saddened by the thought. Perhaps a little over-dramatic in the face to the Emperor… what was wrong with showing his father that he really cared for his half-siblings?

The Emperor did not appear moved by Clovis' theatrics. "Did you really exhaust your resources trying to find them, Clovis?"

"O-of course father! Lelouch and Nunnally were my dear siblings. I loved them as if we shared the same mother. No resource was spared when looking for them. Their lives were precious more than anything," Clovis proclaimed.

Did it really come easy for him to say such nonsense even in front of the Emperor? Or did he just believe that the man didn't know anything about his attempts to look for Lelouch and Nunnally? The truth was that he had tried. He wouldn't go as far as to say that he had exhausted everything to find them.

"It is either you're lying to me about them searching for them with everything or you re incompetent, Clovis…"

"I would never lie to you, Your Majesty!"

"I hope so because if you are, there would be consequences for that," after those words reached him, Clovis shrank to his seat. "If you are not lying, then you're just incompetent. You have all the resources of Area 11 in your hands, and yet you couldn't them while they were living right under your nose. How could you not find Lelouch when he was living with the Ashfords this whole time?"

Clovis shrank deeper. He was in deep shit. If he admitted to lying, the Emperor would punish him massively to lying so blatantly. The second option was to say he was incompetent, but he couldn't actually admit that, could he? The Emperor didn't tolerate incompetence and there would be a price for that.

Either way, he was royally screwed.

Wait, had the Emperor just said that Lelouch was living with the Ashfords?

"Do you mean to say that Lelouch and Nunnally area actually alive?" Clovis jumped up from his seat. His prior thoughts no longer a memory. He was merely excited that at the thought of his siblings being alive.

The Emperor didn't bother answering the stupid question. What else would his statement be implying other than that Lelouch was alive and well? "You will go to Ashford academy and take him. Leave Nunnally. I only want Lelouch. I will arrive in a about an hour or more along with the Knight of one to fetch him."

For a moment, Clovis' jealousy got the best of him. When had the Emperor sent his own private plane just for him? That was starting to with the low. When had the man got in the same plane as him? Because Lelouch was alive the Emperor was even coming along just to get him along with the Knight of One.

For a moment, Clovis envied his brother.

Before Clovis could say anything, the Emperor disappeared. Not even a goodbye. Oh well, he could use Lelouch for his public image, but honestly, he was really excited that Lelouch and Nunnally were alive.

Excited as he was, Clovis could not possibly go to Lelouch without a plan. He might not be the strategist like Schneizel, but there was something brewing up and if the Emperor was coming along just to fetch Lelouch, it would send shockwaves around Britannia's aristocracy. He needed to be in between if his father was going to favour his half-brother.

Lelouch could not take the spotlight by himself.

Should he inform Schneizel then? Yes, he should. The man would be happy to know that his chess partner was alive and well. He was sure that Euphemia would be ecstatic and would possibly seek to come along with the Emperor – not that he would permit it.

Without much thought crossing his mind, Clovis called the Second Prince.

"Clovis," Schneizel said, sounding slightly surprised that his brother was calling so soon after they last spoke.

"Before you get any funny ideas, I am not calling for help," the Third Prince of the Britannian Empire was quick to say.

"The thought didn't cross my mind, brother. If you were calling now for help, it would have been a disappointment. Although I offered my help, I believe that you are a capable leader who can turn things around," Schneizel said. "My offer to help was merely because we are brothers and family should help each other out."

Was it so natural that he could come up with such nice words for anyone? If Clovis asked for something practical to back his words, Schneizel would think of something that would get his brother grinning madly, the 'honest' praise from the Prime Minister.

"You flatter me, brother," Clovis said with a smile.

"Not at all," Schneizel said with a slight shake of his head. "It is the truth, Clovis. You Inherited an unstable area that had just been through a war, but you have managed to stabilize things, even though there are a few voices trying to cause a disturbance, Area 11 is doing rather well, economically. I think that is something you should be proud of," the prince said.

After what the Emperor had said that was something Clovis needed to boost his ego. Still, he contained himself from bursting into joy. He didn't have to show that to Schneizel, but he was thankful to his brother for raising his spirits. When he did look at things, he was doing rather well. He could even proudly proclaim that Area 11 was doing a lot better than when the numbers were ruling it.

Clovis cleared his throat. Had he been just blushing at the praise? He shook his head and spoke. "Anyway, I called you because I want to share with you some great news!"

"What is it?"

"Lelouch and Nunnally are alive! They are alive brother!" Clovis said happily, on his feet with his hands stretched out, thanking the heavens. He looked as if he would burst into tears when he did speak, but he was honestly happy that his half-siblings were alive.

The Second Prince stared at this brother for a long minute with a serious look on his face. "Clovis, this isn't a laughing matter…" Schneizel said with a pointed look. Clovis could not play like that, not when it came to Lelouch. "Have you been drinking?"

Clovis sat down and gave his brother a pointed look of his own. "You wound me brother," the prince said in a flat tone. "Father informed me a minute ago. After I get things ready, I am going to fetch him from where he is and he will be coming back to Pendragon with father."

"With father?" Schneizel asked, finding this to be interesting. "Father is going to collect Lelouch himself?" Clovis nodded. "When you do return with him, call me before anything."

It was clear to Clovis that his brother wasn't asking him but telling him. "I will do that."

"Thank you for informing me, Clovis," Schneizel said. "You should inform Cornelia and Euphemia. I am sure they will be happy to know this…" Having said that, Schneizel cut off the line with Clovis.

He thought for a few moments, why would the Emperor go out in his way to fetch Lelouch himself? He had disowned the former prince and made him a political hostage. Schneizel wasn't delusional enough to think that the man was just that happy to have found his son alive.

This also raised the question about the condition in which he found Lelouch. If the former prince was alive and well, then it must mean that he had been simply hiding from royalty. If he was suffering from memory loss and had forgotten home, it would be understandable.

Well, he could not form any conclusions now; he would need to speak to Lelouch in person to confirm. But first thing first, he needed to speak to the Emperor just to confirm if Clovis wasn't pulling a hard one on him.

"Schneizel," the Emperor started, appearing in the large screen in front of Schneizel. "What is it?"

"Clovis informed me that Lelouch is alive and you are going to fetch him," the prince stated.

"What is your question, Schneizel?"

The Second Prince could tell that the man seemed a little impatient. But it could all be a play. He didn't test the waters though. It was always best to be on the safe side when dealing with the Emperor. "Is it true?"

"Yes," Charles zi Britannia said. "Is that all?"

"I just wanted to confirm. My brother can be a little mischievous," Schneizel said. "I look forward to when you return with my dear long lost brother…"

The Emperor offered no response; he merely cut off the line. Schneizel sighed. The man didn't look as if he was just happy to have found his son. Then again, when has he shown happiness over anything? The man hadn't shed a tear when his 'favoured' wife was murdered by 'terrorists.'

Schneizel looked up as he noticed he was receiving a call from the private line reserved for royalty. He assumed it was Cornelia before he even accepted the call. "Cornelia," the Third Prince greeted with charming smile.

"Is it true?" Cornelia asked. Well, more like demanded.

Schneizel smiled at a thought: Straight to the point; no time for small talk. Well, he expected as such from the woman. Besides, this was something important to her. Cornelia had been attached to the vi Britannias as he had been, perhaps a little more.

He considered feigning ignorance on her question for the kicks, but he decided it would not do any good. "If you're talking about Lelouch and Nunnally, then yes. I just spoke to father and he confirmed it. I don't know the details, but Clovis doesn't seem to know about it either."

"I gathered that much," Cornelia said.

"Isn't it interesting that it wasn't Clovis who found Lelouch but father? If anything, it doesn't look like he was found, it seems like he just called our brother and informed him of Lelouch's position. If Clovis had found Lelouch himself, he would have made sure to add that when he informed us of the news…" but then again, he would have had a hard time believing it if it was coming of Clovis.

"Is it the time to be asking those kinds of questions?" Cornelia asked quietly. "Shouldn't we just be happy that our dear brother and sister have been found alive..?" the princess paused. "I will be heading back home to see him in person."

"Perhaps you are right," Schneizel said. "I will see you when you do return," he said. Cornelia nodded and cut off the line.

He didn't say she was right, just perhaps. Those questions had to be asked. He really could not wait to talk to Lelouch and discover the truth. The moment the brother of his lands into Pendragon, he would drag him away to a game of chess. In that game, he would be able to play the questions and hopefully, Lelouch would be in a mood to serve them.

 **Milly's Residence**

When the blond student council president opened her door, she wasn't expecting to see Lelouch of all people. Then again very few people knocked her front door, especially not at this time of the day.

"Lelouch…" Milly greeted the vice-president with a warm smile.

But her smile dropped a second later when she realized that Lelouch looked a little pale and as if he hadn't slept through the night. She got worried just by seeing him in this state. She didn't think for a moment it had something to do with what she said yesterday. There was something troubling him.

She knew Lelouch well enough to know that if something could bring him to this state, then it had to do with the Britannian imperial family. A delicate matter that seemed to suck the life out of him and bring out all the darkness and hatred that laid deep within his heart.

For a moment, Milly indulged in the thought that perhaps Lelouch had come here to seek comfort in her. It was only for a moment. When had Lelouch ever confided in her? They shared a few things, but the former prince never really went deep with what he thought behind the curtains. He was secretive and went to great lengths to keep his secrets.

Some measures she could understand, but some bothered her as they secrets were being kept from her.

"Milly," Lelouch said, his tone dull and lifeless.

Milly noted that his eyes looked a bit dark. She didn't say anything though. She welcomed him inside the house and silently led him to a private room, where they could talk. There was obviously something occurring that was hurting him up in the head.

Once they arrived, Milly closed the door behind and led Lelouch to a couch. The former prince sat down slowly, and a bit weakly. This was probably the second or third time he was showing himself to be so vulnerable and weak. Lelouch always liked to keep things hidden and he didn't like showing this side of himself.

Milly grew a lot more concerned as the former looked up to her, his face no longer showing sadness but anger… it was pure unadulterated anger. He was obviously seething. "The Emperor called me last night."

Milly could hear glass shattering when those words registered into her mind. The Emperor had called. Charles zi Britannia had called. It sounded unbelievable, but Lelouch's expression said otherwise. If it had been a comedy show, she would have been rolling on the floor in laughter.

But the man Lelouch had been trying to hide from had called him. It only meant that he had known. Lelouch's thoughts must have been crushed. With how the former prince depicted the man, she could assume that he had said something.

"Clovis will be at the academy at any moment now to fetch me. I'm going to be sent back to Pendragon," Lelouch added after a few moments of silence.

"Nunnally?"

"She will stay behind. That suits me best anyway," Lelouch frowned at a thought. "She seemed a lot of happy to know that she will get to talk to her siblings again…" he shook his head. He would rather everyone think she was dead.

Nunnally might not even be aware of it, but the Emperor could use her against him. It wasn't just the Emperor, but the enemies he was likely to get when he does get back to the fold of the Imperial family. He had been shielding her from the reality, and would like to keep it that way. At least he was certain that only those who cared would want to see her.

"Milly," Lelouch said; his tone was a lot more serious now. "I won't be there to tell them… it is going to come out soon anyway. Please tell them… I know you will find a way to keep them quiet and calm," he managed a weak smile.

Milly could only smile. She didn't have anything to give him. She didn't know what awaited him in that world. Perhaps her family would be thrilled at hearing that Lelouch was going to be a prince again, but she was worried.

Even so, Milly spoke in a firm tone, betraying her worries. "I don't know what really awaits you at Pendragon, but the Lelouch I know has always faced up to everything that has come his way. You survived a war battlefield, I'm sure you will survive this as well. I know you hate the imperial family, but you can't run away from it now.

"As long as you're given a chance to live, I know you can think of a way to 'live' your life instead of just trying to 'survive' At least now, you can actually do something. You just need to bring out those guts!"

Lelouch smiled at his friend. "Thank you for everything, Milly, but I must still ask you to continue to look after Nunnally."

"You don't have to ask, Lelouch," Milly said. "Have you told my grandfather?"

The former prince shook his head. "Tell him; I need to go back and spend some time with my sister before they come for me…"

Sometimes Milly envied just how much Lelouch loved his sister. She really wished she had someone who would do the things that the former prince could do for his sister. Lelouch would turn this world upside down if it would make his sister happy.

Those who loved her were using her. Lelouch protected his loved ones.

How wonderful was it to be loved by him…

"I will," Milly said firmly.

"Before I forget, Nunnally said you were looking for me yesterday?" Lelouch asked, the expression on his face was a bit normal now.

Milly merely smiled. "Oh, it was nothing. I was just checking up on you," she said. "You should hurry, the Viceroy might be on his now…"

Truth is; she wanted to apologize for what she had said yesterday. However, seeing that there were more matters that needed to be dealt with, she didn't want to remind him of anything. Well, on the bright side of things, he would no longer powerless. If he does regain his privileges, he would no longer be Lelouch Lamperouge…

But Lelouch vi Britannia.

"If you say so," Lelouch said before walking away from the blonde-haired childhood friend of his. He suddenly stopped but did not turn to face Milly. "I might actually be able to do something, Milly. You said it, Lamperouge could not do anything, but vi Britannia can."

Milly didn't miss the bitterness in Lelouch's tone, and I made her feel a bit miserable for saying what she said. She didn't even get the chance to say she was sorry, Lelouch disappeared.

Milly didn't waste any time once Lelouch left. She needed to speak to her grandfather and then prepare to welcome Clovis la Britannia. She would have to usher the blond Governor towards Lelouch's residence and make sure she manages to keep control of things.

It was still early morning, but Milly found her grandfather sitting behind the desk in his office.

Ruben smiled at seeing his beloved granddaughter. "Milly," he said. "I don't get to see you so early in the morning in my office," he said. "Is everything okay?"

The blonde didn't sit down; she wasn't here to stick for too long anyway. She needed to think of how she was going to handle things. "The Viceroy will be coming to the academy to take Lelouch. He is being sent back to Pendragon. He said the Emperor called him last night."

Ruben lost the smile on his face for a long minute before relaxing.

"You don't look that worried…" Milly noted. He had been shocked after hearing the news, but after getting over the shock, everything seemed to just turn normal.

"If Lelouch had been found by someone else, then there would be reasons to worry for his life. But it was the Emperor. I'm not sure 'found' is the correct term to use. If the Emperor called him, then he must have known that Lelouch was here…"

"The thought did come to mind, and I guess that is what was making Lelouch miserable. He must have spent all night obsessing over where he might have wrong to give himself away," Milly said before tilting her head to the side. "What do you mean 'worry about his life'?"

"Don't forget Lelouch's last appearance before the Emperor. He was disowned and sent here as a political hostage. With the Emperor just calling out of the blue, it is safe to say that he must have a purpose for Lelouch," the man paused, appearing to wonder about the purpose the Emperor might have for Lelouch. "In any case, we will just have to wait and see what happens now."

 **About an Hour Later**

Perhaps he had been a bit over dramatic about everything, but Clovis had brought with him an army of knightmares to the academy and they had surrounded it. He hadn't even gotten out of his royal vehicle until the academy was secured. By now, everyone had noticed the war machines around the academy, but when it had become known that it was the Viceroy's guards, no one had panicked.

He hadn't actually told anyone what was the purpose of the visit to the academy. His people just had to follow the orders and soon enough his adoring media will be calling his offices for an interview.

Two armed guards flanked Clovis when he entered the academy grounds, but a blond young woman stopped him. She was rather beautiful if he could say – for a moment, he smiled before turning serious. He had an image to uphold after all.

"Who are you?" Clovis more or less demanded. His thoughts about her beauty were a mere memory, his expression now showed irritation at the woman for standing in his way – a mini him had practically exploded in excitement already, any more wait would not be good for the health of those around.

"Milly Ashford, your highness," Milly said respectfully. She still had it in her. She had thought that perhaps it had gone away when she came here. "I am the student council President, but I am not standing here as a representative of the council, 'his' messenger."

Clovis thought of Milly's words for a few seconds before smiling. He assumed 'he' was Lelouch. All the better. He didn't have to look for that brother of his. "Lead me to him…"

Milly nodded, "Please follow me…"

It wasn't a silent walk towards Lelouch's residence, nothing by that stretch of imagination. The girls were fawning all over the prince walking behind Milly and she was sure that if it weren't for the cold stares of the guards as well as the guns they carried, some may have attempted to get close.

Of course Clovis didn't help matters; the Third Prince indulged himself by waving around with a charming smile that just seemed to melt the girls.

For some reason, Milly didn't find it attractive. She had seen too many plays and she knew a player when she saw one. Clovis was surely enjoying the attention. Then again, when had he stayed away from the spotlight?

He was very different from the other prince.

When they arrived at their destination, Clovis did not wait for Milly to open the door. He marched in front of her, and went through to open the unlocked door. The guards had blitzed past Milly when Clovis disappeared off into the house.

The blonde student Council President didn't go inside, she merely leaned against the door frame; hands folded bellow her bust and watched the scene unfold.

"Have some manners, Clovis," Lelouch said to the Viceroy – his tone was anything but light. Still, he spoke as if he had been speaking to the prince just a night ago. "You should know you aren't supposed to just burst through someone's door without knocking first."

"Brother!" Clovis basically disappeared in a blur. The trained guards who had been behind him didn't even see anything. The next thing they saw was the Viceroy suffocating Lelouch.

Wait, did he just say, brother?

"You're really alive. I was so shocked and excited when father said you were alive!" Clovis said shedding a few tears. "I'm so happy to see you again. I thought I had lost you when I couldn't find you."

Yeah, right, Lelouch thought. He wondered how long it had taken for Clovis to practice his little speech. He knew his half-brother cared, but he also knew the man exaggerated things. He was overly dramatic. Lelouch had seen his brother's appearances in the news.

"I won't be alive anymore if you continue to strangle me," Lelouch said.

Clovis realized he had been holding Lelouch a bit too tight. He smiled sheepishly while both his hands were on Lelouch's shoulders. "You don't look healthy though. Have you been eating enough here? Why didn't you even tell me you were alive and living here? You know, I could have given you everything you needed instead of living in a backhouse."

"I was very much fine living on my own and in this back house, Clovis," Lelouch said a bit sharply.

The sharpness in Lelouch's tone was enough to force Clovis to take a step back, a bit surprised. The prince was quick to shrug it off as one of Lelouch's tantrums. "It seems you haven't changed that much," Clovis said.

"I have changed in many ways than you can imagine, brother," there was a dark undertone that Clovis failed to take note off.

He seemed to be in his own little world; he was looking around, searching for something. "Where is Nunnally?"

Lelouch frowned slightly. If Clovis hadn't asked, he would have not said a word about her. He didn't want her to be brought into the public life – it would just make her life difficult.

As if on queue, Sayako walked in, pushing the blind princess of Britannia.

The Third Prince stared at her for a few moments. He looked at her closed eyes, the wheelchair – she hadn't regained her eyesight. She was crippled. It was unfair for such a kind girl to be faced with such a fate.

He let out a tear.

Perhaps this one was honest.

The Viceroy slowly walked over to his half-sister, a smile on his lips. Once he reached down, he knelt down, but his knee did not touch the floor. He didn't want to get himself dirty. "Nunnally," the prince said quietly. "It is me, Clovis…"

Nunnally smiled brightly. "Brother Clovis," she said in a happy tone; she was holding out her right hand, trying to feel the prince. Clovis held out his and Nunnally gently took it. "It is really you, brother. I have missed you."

"I missed you too, Nunnally," Clovis said. "I'm afraid I can't stay for too long. Lelouch's plane is already on its way and I need to get those filthy clothes off him before our father sees him like this. Euphemia and Cornelia have sent their love. I don't know when they will be able to come see you, but I will return later."

Nunnally nodded.

It hit her; her brother was leaving. Her dear brother was leaving her alone. When had she ever been without him? Always, her brother was with her. He was always there making her happy and she had been quite content with living with her brother alone. Even though she did miss her brothers and sisters, she had been happy here.

They had friends, she did not lack anything.

But most of all, she had her brother – a big brother who loved her dearly.

Those days she used to wait for him to return when he was being late were fleeing away from her. Lelouch was no longer going to tuck her in bed and kiss her good night. She was no longer going to be with her brother every day.

For Nunnally, it felt like death.

Still, she knew her brother. He had been struggling since he brought her the news. He didn't want to leave her and he hated their father. He was being forced to return to the home he had said he would never see again. If she broke now, it would only hurt her brother. She didn't even know what he was going to meet when he does face their father.

Nunnally didn't allow herself to cry. She didn't allow her brother to suffer anymore. He had suffered enough. She could hide her selfish pain.

"Nunnally," Lelouch said, having pushed Clovis away from her side; His hand on her lap, holding hers. "I have to go, but I will call you as soon as I land. I promise."

Nunnally managed a smile, and held out both her hands. Lelouch got up and gave his sister one last hug. It was long, and no word was said between them. They separated and Lelouch walked away with Clovis and his guards.

Milly didn't follow; she walked towards Nunnally and knelt down in front of her wheelchair. "You are truly strong, Nunnally…" the blonde said warmly. "Lelouch needed you to be strong. You did well…"

Nunnally's sadness was all too apparent as she nodded, a tear running through a right cheek.

Her beloved brother was gone… it was not forever, but she would no longer going to see him when she wanted, and when he wanted.

It was a prison sentence.

 **With Lelouch**

Once more again, Clovis waved warmly at his beloved crowd of adoring school girls. They were a little young for his taste, but ignoring them would not help with his popularity. Fame was almost everything. It wasn't enough that he was prince, but he needed something much more.

Perhaps it was power that he was missing.

He wasn't the only getting the smiles and kisses, but Lelouch was getting them as well – they were calling him vice president. By that, Clovis figured the black haired was the vice to that blonde beauty who had welcomed him into the academy grounds.

Still, some where addressing the former prince so casually that it made Clovis believe that his brother had been living the life of a commoner not as a prince. The Third prince could not think that. Hell, he would do everything in his power to ensure that he was never disowned.

"You are rather popular here," Clovis said to his brother – who despite his popularity, wasn't responding to the calls he was receiving. Lelouch seemed to be ignoring them.

"I will be even more popular when they learn I am really a prince," the bitterness in Lelouch's tone wasn't lost to Clovis, but he didn't comment on it. "Let us just get out of here before we start being questioned on why I am walking by your side and talking to you so casually."

Clovis seemed to think for a few moments before nodding. "I wouldn't want anyone from the media doing a story about this before I get the make the grand announcement myself…" he said with a nod.

Lelouch shook his head as fell into silence and made his way towards Clovis' waiting limousine.

The former prince was sitting inside Clovis' car, heading towards the Viceroy. The latter was sitting beside him in silence. Lelouch couldn't really tell what was going on with the prince because he was absorbed with his own thoughts. Troublesome thoughts.

It was happening; he was being shipped to Pendragon because the Emperor had finally found some use for him. It left a bitter taste in his mouse to think that the man had known for while about his survival and yet didn't do anything, but just allowed him to live under the illusion that he was safe from the Imperial family.

Well, the quiet time with his beloved sister had been fun, and now he was going into the lion's den. He was going to be exposed to those parasites who called themselves superior people simply because they were born of noble. Disgusting creatures. They had hated him for being born by a mother who had been a mere commoner.

Nothing could be done now and he couldn't plot on how he was going to deal with it until he met that bastard who sits atop of Britannia.

He didn't have to worry much about whether he had left enough for Nunnally to enjoy everything he had been giving her. He had left all his savings in Sayako's care. The Japanese woman would take care of Nunnally with the money he left. For now, Lelouch had nothing in him. He was going back to that loathsome place empty handed.

Clovis could see that Lelouch was going through some thoughts, but he had his questions. "Why, Lelouch?"

Clovis asked calmly. Lelouch wasn't suffering from amnesia that he could say he had forgotten that he was Britannian royalty. He had known that his brother was governing the place and yet made no attempt to get in contact with him. Why had he done something like that? Would he have shown himself if the Emperor hadn't found him?

"Why didn't you say anything Lelouch?" Clovis asked again. "I am your brother and you know that I care about you? If you wanted to remain hidden, we could have spoken to Schneizel and he could have thought of something."

"I was quite content with the way I was living," Lelouch said a bit flatly. "I didn't want to return. I just wanted to live in peace with my sister."

Was that really too much to ask? In this world, the powerless would always be crushed and devoured. But Lelouch would destroy that system. For his sister's wish to come true, the system had to be destroyed.

Clovis smiled sadly. "Do you hate us that much Lelouch? We may not share mothers but we still share the same father. I thought we got along just fine."

Lelouch sighed as he relaxed slightly. "We did get along, Clovis, but I cannot forget my mother's murder."

He would not and he would not let Charles get away with the way he treated him. He would not rest until he does find out who killed his mother. That person would surely pay dearly. If his mother hadn't been murdered, Nunnally wouldn't be blind now; she would have been the young little sister who used to make his life miserable along with Euphemia.

"Do you think that we had something to do with it, Lelouch?" Clovis asked. "I can assure you; I had nothing to do with it."

"What do you know, then, Clovis?" Lelouch demanded, eyes blazing over his half-brother.

Clovis shook his head sadly. "Cornelia and Schneizel should know something. I don't know anything. You must know I wasn't anything until I was given the post to be Viceroy of this area. Those two hold higher positions than me."

Lelouch said nothing. He should have expected as much. He didn't know if Clovis was hiding something from him, but he didn't ask anything further. He merely looked outside of the window and dived back into his thoughts.

 **Student Council Room**

Rivalz stared at Milly with a confused and curious look on his face. Milly had yet to say anything, but from what was happening outside, something was going on. Not to mention that their Vice president wasn't around, having casually walked away with the Third prince of Britannia and into his limousine they went.

The students were causing ruckus outside, demanding to know where their vice-president was being taken or if he had any relationship with the Clovis. From the way they had been talking, even if no one heard anything, they seemed to know each other – that hadn't been on the memorandum.

Milly put on a rather stern look on her face – surprising her friends. She almost never put on that kind of a look. To them, she was the playful and mischievous student council president, and a pervert in Shirley's eyes. But today, she had to be like this because this was a serious matter.

"What is going on Milly? Is it really true that Lulu was taken away Prince Clovis?" Shirley asked. She hadn't been there to see, but she had heard. Everyone was talking about it in the academy and the student council had been a target for answers.

"What I am about to tell you will not leave this room and you will not tell anyone about it, do you understand me?" Milly looked at every one of them – from Nina, Shirley and to Rivalz. She gave them a look that clearly said she was dead serious.

"You're making me worry, Milly," Rivalz said slowly, feeling slightly uncomfortable.

"Lelouch did indeed leave with the Viceroy, but there is nothing to fear," she paused for a moment. She wasn't going to inform them of Lelouch's tragic past… for now at least. If they pushed, she would tell them the half-truth. But it wasn't that she couldn't tell them to shut up and listen to what she was saying.

She would do so because she didn't want them to feel betrayed by Lelouch. They had been living with a Britannian prince for all these time and he never said a word to them. Rivalz had been his friend and would definitely feel crushed if the person he thought was his best friend had been 'lying' to him all these time.

She wouldn't even get to Shirley's case. She would just say enough just to make sure they understood his story and did not resent him for not telling them anything. Well, technically, he hadn't been a prince because he had been disowned. But that didn't change anything, did it?

"The Viceroy is actually Lelouch's older brother, half-brother to be precise. He came here to take him back to Pendragon…"

It was almost amusing just seeing a range of emotions flash through their expressions as they tried to make sense of what she had said. It took some time, but they finally exploded.

"Wait…" Rivalz said with a confused look on his face. "If Lelouch is the brother to a prince, wouldn't that make him a prince as well?" The teen drew a disbelieving look on his face. "That guy is anything but a prince…"

"If Lelouch is a prince then that means Nunnally is..?"

 **Viceroy Palace**

When they arrived at the Viceroy's palace, Clovis made a fuss about getting him the right clothes to wear. He was stripped back into the clothing he had abandoned years ago and never thought he would wear again, but here he was.

"Should we make a public announcement about finding you?" Clovis asked in thought. "I would need to write your script and plan everything. It is a pity that I won't have to throw a party for you…"

"I don't need a party," Lelouch said, a bit tiredly. He could really use with a sleep right now. Nevertheless, he could not sleep until the plane to take him back to that place arrives. Why wasn't he even taking Clovis' plane anyway?

"Sure you do," Clovis said with a wave of his hand. "Now that you are all dressed up, I can call Schneizel. He said he wanted to speak with you as soon as you are available."

Before Lelouch could object, Clovis had already gone his way to connect to Schneizel's private line.

The Second Prince smiled upon seeing Lelouch. "It is really you, brother," the prime minister of the Holy Britannian Empire said with a smile. "When Clovis told me, I thought he had been drinking a little too much."

Clovis butted in before Lelouch could respond. "What do you make of me, brother?"

"It was just difficult to believe. We had believed that our brother was dead after all," the prince said calmly. "I'm very interested in hearing how you have been doing, brother. I have already prepared a chessboard."

Lelouch snorted. It was likely going to be an interrogation. Schneizel would be asking too many questions and no doubt try to use him. With Schneizel everything was calculated. You just didn't take favours from the man.

"I look forward to it," Lelouch said, managing a forced smile.

"Excellent," the second prince said. "I hope you have improved. Our other siblings are not much of players…" Schneizel trailed off when Clovis raised his hand.

"An important call," he said.

Schneizel assumed it was their father, or Clovis would not have interrupted him. "I see… well, Lelouch, have a safe flight."

The Knight of One appeared in the screen. "Prince Lelouch," he said calmly. "The plane will land in a few minutes. Please make your way outside because it will not wait for long."

The Knight of One? Now that he thought about it, Clovis hadn't said anything about which plane would be shipping him back to homeland. He would have preferred to be on a plane alone. Wasn't it something that despite hating aristocracy, he had no problems in enjoying in one of the privileges that came with being born of royalty?

He didn't have to worry get into a public plane, a private plane would do. Hell, most princess and princesses had their own private planes. No doubt the Emperor's pawn would be getting one of this own once he does settle down into the role that the man would be giving him.

He didn't hold any delusions; for certain, he wasn't going back to Pendragon to be executed, but to be used. He was going to be a piece in the Emperor's chessboard – the thought really did leave a bitter taste in his mouth, but there was nothing he could really do about it. He just had to follow through everything the Emperor told him or else Nunnally would be brought into question.

"I will be out then," Lelouch said in a barely audible tone. He stood up and the Knight of One disappeared.

Clovis was staring at him with a curious eye. He didn't allow his thoughts to show in his face. It still bothered him that Lelouch was going to be accompanied by the Knight of One and the Emperor. Perhaps their father was just happy that his son was finally returning home.

It wasn't out of the question in Clovis' mind and he chose to believe that rather than having some bitter thoughts that wouldn't allow him to retain the friendship he once held with Lelouch when they were younger.

"Come on," Clovis said, leading Lelouch to a place the plane would be landing. So, the Emperor would not be stepping into the land of Area 11 or even stepping out to breathe its air or just look at the beautiful palace he had built.

It was sad.

"Don't worry about too much, brother," Clovis said, seeing that Lelouch didn't look too happy. "You have me. Nunnally is right here… once things blow over, I will ask for father to make you my Sub-Viceroy so that you don't stay away from your sister. We can tag team as we did in the past."

Lelouch didn't offer an immediate response. Surely, Clovis had his own motives. He had not become stupid in the past years and he knew that people always had their motives for doing things. Nevertheless, it didn't matter what Clovis had in mind. The half-brother of his wasn't smart enough to make him feel threatened by his scheming's.

"I doubt the father," Lelouch spat 'father' as if it were a curse, "would allow for something like that. He called me to take me out of this area. Well, I will know once I do reach appear before him."

"Father can listen at times, Lelouch," Clovis said firmly, thinking he could persuade the Emperor to allow Lelouch to return to the area.

Lelouch didn't respond; he was staring at the magnificent plane that was alive in front of them. It was certainly not just a plane of just anyone. The Knight of One was standing below the stairways, obviously waiting for him.

Lelouch waved his hand to Clovis and walked towards the plane.

"Prince Lelouch," The Knight of One greeted calmly. "It is good to see you again. It has been quite some time since I last saw you and Princess Nunnally."

Lelouch stared at the man for a moment, going through his memories. Yes, the Knight of One had been a fan of his mother. He had heard that the man occasionally battled with his mother back then before she was brutally murdered.

But what did that change?

Nothing.

"Last time I checked, I was disowned," Lelouch ground out. "But it is a pleasure to be in your company, Sir Bismarck," the former prince of Britannia stated calmly before stepping into the stairs.

Bismarck offered no response to Lelouch, but merely followed the prince from behind.

When Lelouch entered the plane, he froze. He was staring at the imposing figure of the Emperor of Britannia, the man he wished to kill with his bare hands, the man he despised with every bone in his body; this was the man who exiled him from Britannia…

His loathsome father.

The Emperor didn't turn to face Lelouch when he spoke. "My unworthy son, don't you have anything to say to your father after such a long time apart than to stare at me so hatefully?"

 **End of chapter**

 **Another cliff-hanger… I swear this one wasn't on purpose.**

 **I got found out… I did say 'legend' would be my last story, but I just could not end it without doing a code geass story, especially when I heard that there would be a season three. It really got me excited.**

 **In any case, the reaction to the first chapter was tremendous, I liked it. A really showdown between Lelouch and the Emperor will have to wait for the next chapter.**

 **I really wish I could respond to all of you who reviewed… I did read them and I have to thank everyone of you who reviewed.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Pendragon**

More than anything, Lelouch felt alive and thrilled when the plane landed – even though he didn't want to be in the city. It was much better than being on the same boat as the man he thought of nothing but bloody thoughts. Really, if he had been alone with the man and had been a little more athletic, he would have considered jumping on the man when he wasn't looking and strangle him to death.

He would go on to proclaim himself Emperor of Britannia.

Lelouch snorted at the thought – if only it was that simple. Even if he does succeed in killing the Emperor, he would never become Emperor as he was – he didn't have anything. Schneizel would smooth talk the first Prince into allowing him to take throne and he would probably face prosecution by Britannia.

Well, if he managed to escape, any country would be willing to accept him for killing the man. Charles wasn't loved by most people in the world and anyone who murdered him would no doubt be a hero in their eyes. Lelouch had no plans on becoming a hero, but he could live with that mantle if it allowed him to make his sister's dream come to reality.

Lelouch felt a lot more energetic despite having deprived himself with sleep the night before – perhaps it was the thought of getting just far away from the Emperor that gave him energy.

Schneizel was waiting in arms with his flat smile – his faithful attendant standing behind him. There were no guards close by, and it gave Lelouch a thought of just bolting off. However, given his ridiculous stamina, he would probably get caught by the Knight of One before he could even make 10 feet. It would only serve to give the Emperor more ammunition to shoot.

Well, it wasn't like the man needed it anyway, by just being emperor, he could toy with his life in any way he liked. Lelouch despised how powerless he was against the Emperor. He was not planning for it to last for far too long though. He would get his day.

The 11th prince walked a bit away from the emperor and his loyal mad dog after stepping out of the plane. He wanted just to be far away from the man. It had been a suffocating journey and Lelouch could not remember how many times he had cussed and glared at the emperor.

It was even frustrating when the man didn't bother responding to any of his attempts to glare at him. He would have been in cloud nine if even Schneizel had called, but the Emperor had not accepted any attempt to connect.

Schneizel stepped closer to Lelouch with his smile painting a friendly image, but he first spoke to the Emperor, head bowed a little in respect. "Your Majesty," the Prime Minister acknowledged the lion in the space.

The Emperor acted as if he hadn't heard anything. He turned towards his Knight, "Bismarck, escort Lelouch to Aries Villa…"

Schneizel was quick to react before the Knight of One could. He had been surprised that the Emperor was instructing the Knight to take Lelouch to his residence, not that the man had ignored his greeting. It wasn't something that would surprise him because he had become used to it. The man's behaviour toward his children really didn't surprise him.

"I was hoping I could walk with my brother, your Majesty. It has been quite some time since we last spoke," Schneizel started calmly. "If it is not too much to ask, I will walk with him with my guards of course, just in case someone might attempt something."

The Emperor stared at Schneizel for a few seconds before walking away. "Lelouch is being punished; he will not talk to anyone nor meet anyone and will be locked up in Aries Villa for a week… with no network connection of course…"

The Emperor walked away – his mind would not be changed and he would not have anyone trying to second-guess him.

Schneizel faced Lelouch with an apologetic look on his face. "I had returned all the way from the EU to meet you, but I guess it can wait. We will talk after a week…"

Lelouch said nothing; he merely followed the big man in front of him.

He didn't even get into a conversation with the Knight of one when they got into the car that would take them to Aries Villa. He had not thought that the man would send him back to this place just after he landed.

He had thought the man would drag him toward the imperial court, look down at him as if he was god and then condemn him to his fate. It was ridiculous, but Lelouch was certain that it was going to happen, eventually. Maybe when he does leave the place, he would be sent to the Imperial court.

Lelouch could already see the look in the eyes of the imperial aristocracy – those insects. They would be making noise as soon as they come in terms with his 'survival' and would no doubt try to make his life a misery. Lelouch would not allow it.

He would not.

The Emperor could get away with it – for now at least. However, Lelouch would not take crap from those filthy creatures who preyed on the weak. He was by no means weak and he didn't like them. If they dared, they would not like how he would react.

Maybe he could just ignore them and build on his support base. It was going to be needed for him to hold some power to survive, not just the Emperor but his children as well. Living as a prince once more meant entering the survival game once again.

This time around, Lelouch would not lose; he would not.

When they arrived at his former home, well, it was apparent that this was going to be his home once again, Lelouch stared at the large entrance with an expressionless mask on his face. How had terrorists managed to get entry into a place that was surrounded by a wall and with the only entrance he knew being the front gate that was always heavily guarded, even now it was guarded.

The car moved once again as they made their way inside the silent palace. It stopped and Lelouch felt as if his whole world stopped. Everything just stopped for a moment before the strong voice of the Knight of one brought him back to the earth.

"Prince Lelouch," the Knight of One called. "Everything has been prepared… I will send a message when the Emperor wishes to see you."

The Knight of One got back into the car and disappeared.

Lelouch stared at the stairs – the all too familiar stares that had carried the corpse of his mother filled with bullets and bullet holes. That sickening moment that had driven him toward the cold and bitter embrace of anger. He had carried the whip of revenge since then, he still did.

He would get his revenge on whoever killed his mother.

Nunnally was blind and crippled because of it; he could not forgive it and would not. His sister has not lost her smile, but she lost those eyes that had once painted her face with innocence. She was blind to the world because of the unforgivable action. Until those responsible were dead and buried, Lelouch would not rest.

The Prince stepped through the stairs, perhaps he was seeing things, but he could see bloodstains around and bullet holes.

Lelouch shook his head. His brilliant mind was playing tricks. The stairs were repaired and cleaned. There was not even a sight of blood or bullet holes. You would not even know if it were the same stairs.

The prince looked back and around the front of the palace, everything appeared as if it had been taken care of and there were no changes. Nothing had changed. The place was maintained to keep its beauty. The only thing that was missing was the life that it had once held.

It was now just lifeless.

Nevertheless, Lelouch did not mind much – this would serve as his motivation; it would always remind him of what was done to him, of what Britannia had done to him; it would remind him of the joy that was ripped away from his life.

Lelouch stepped further toward the door, with a new renowned strength. As he got closer to the doors, they slowly opened and a young woman, short black hair, dark green eyes, a slender build and a warm smile. "Your Highness, I have been waiting for your arrival…" the woman said, her head bowed slightly.

Lelouch did not pay her mind. He merely nodded to acknowledge her presence and walked past her. The doors slammed shut after he stepped in.

The moment they did, Lelouch felt as if he had been locked in a prison cell. There would be no to talk to, no form of communication with anyone. It was going to be a problem. It hadn't hit him back then, but now he felt the full weight of the emperor's 'punishment'

He would not know what was happening around the palace, he would not know what was happening to his sister or what people were planning for him. Hell, by the time he does get out, he could as well find the palace surrounded by a bloody battle with his enemies fighting for the first position to kill him.

This was certainly going to be hell.

His enemies would be conspiring, cooking plans to trouble his life while he sat within the palace, ignorant of the plans. He didn't even know what the Emperor had in mind that would be his fate. It was truly going to turn out to be a cruel time for him.

Lelouch sighed; for now, he would have to sleep. His body was seriously tired. The nightmares of this place would not be a bother; he was too tired to think.

 **With Schneizel**

The Second Prince and Prime minister of the Britannian Empire was sitting inside his fancy car with a contemplative look on his face. Of course, he was disappointed that he could not get to speak to Lelouch, but it was nothing that would trouble him enough to even go to the emperor and enquire the true reason.

He could figure out things by himself.

A simple man would not think there was a reason behind the Emperor's decision to forbid Lelouch from leaving Aries Villa and locking all forms of communication. The man always had his reasons for doing things, some he could come close to figuring out, and some were simple because there were no attempts to hide them.

Ignorance just played its part in other's minds to think through what was written in small letters.

"When we were told that his majesty would be coming back with prince Lelouch, I was quite shocked… it was hard to believe, but believable now that I have seen it," Konan said to Schneizel. "Still, why would the emperor do something like that for Lelouch when he was the one who cast him out?"

Schneizel put on his delightful smile before he responded. "For different reasons, but the clear one is that he has 'use' for my brother. If there hadn't been some use, I doubt my brother would have been called back to the city."

Konan raised an eyebrow, "That is when the assumption that he knew Lelouch had been alive all along is proved to be right…"

"It is correct; I have no doubt after giving it some thought. He knew Lelouch was still alive… perhaps not just after the war, but quite possibly some years after. It would have been impossible for him to keep an eye on Lelouch given the status of Area 11… but after things settled, he could have looked," Schneizel paused for a moment. "Well, if I had looked, I would have started my search with the Ashfords after learning they moved to the area. They had been great supports of the late consort Marianne.

They wouldn't deny Lelouch any hospitality after everything though the family did suffer a misfortune because they were supporters of his mother. Besides, for them there was always a chance of getting back their noble status if Lelouch does end up returning to being a prince."

Everything was limitless – he could be wrong about the Ashfords. Certainly, the chances of reclaiming their status through Lelouch bordered impossible in some angles. Lelouch had been 'exiled' and if the emperor had the intensions to see Lelouch die, he would have ordered for their execution for harbouring a 'fugitive.'

Despite how slim the chances were, Schneizel would not rule it out at this stage. Lelouch wasn't going to face any punishment of any kind from their father. He was going to live the life of a prince once again, serving the empire in some ways – either politics or Military. The Prime Minister would rather he choose politics so he could gain a compatible ally.

"It was a risk, but now Prince Lelouch does owe them a favour for everything they have done for him and his sister," Konan said.

Schneizel nodded. "I must speak to him quickly before they do. I don't want him to end up making a decision that would be unfavourable," the Prime Minister said. "It is interesting that his Majesty has secluded and taken up Lelouch himself, isn't it? By end day, everyone will know that my brother is very much alive, and by tomorrow, they will know he is staying at Aries Villa.

Those who hated him for being birthed by a commoner mother, will not be happy, perhaps will even be gleeful with the thought of crushing him, but anyone with brains will not do that. My brother was brought back by his majesty; the emperor flew from Pendragon to Area 11 just to fetch Lelouch. That certainly does send a message, doesn't it?"

Konan thought about it for a moment before nodding. "No one will make a stupid move towards him."

Schneizel nodded. "Lelouch… no, the vi Britannia were never well liked by the aristocracy who are too quick to judge on blood than looking at the potential. They possess the ignorant belief that because they are bone noble, they are superior in everything. True they do excel, but that has nothing to do with birth, they excel because they offer their children the best in education while ensuring that the inferior get nothing.

Lelouch is an example. They used to say the only thing that made him noble was our father's blood, but half of his being is common. That makes him a 'half-prince' in their eyes, but my brother was much more capable than any of our brothers and sisters. If he has dropped the naivety he held when he went to face our father years ago, then Lelouch would be my worthy successor."

Konan looked stared at Schneizel for a long minute. He didn't know much about Lelouch's intelligence, but the Prime Minister spoke of the vi Britannia with so much 'respect' that didn't come through a silver tongue.

"I see you're sceptical, but you will see in time," Schneizel said with a small smile on his lips.

 **With the Emperor**

"That wasn't very nice of you, Charles," Marianne said to the Emperor – who was relaxed in his 'office' watching the surveillance cameras around Aries Villa. He had them installed just to see if there was anything he had missed in terms of security.

The place was made to be secure so that when Nunnally does return 'home' she would be secure. He didn't wish for anything to happen to the siblings. Lelouch had much use for him to die so soon. He would have the cameras removed by the time Lelouch could leave Aries Villa.

For now, the prince could curse, toss and turn inside the 'prison' he had made for him. No doubt the boy would be a little paranoid by the time he does come out of the place. It was just what he wanted. He wanted Lelouch to have some fire when he is summoned to the royal court. It wouldn't make things interesting if the boy just bowed and allowed him to walk over.

There needed to be some resistance. It would also gain Lelouch some admires, something that would give him a good start. That was all he was willing to give the prince though. A start, if he could not grow strong on his own feet then he would not challenge Schneizel.

"If I had allowed Schneizel to talk to Lelouch now, he would have found out some interesting things. Besides, it makes things interesting now that I have made things in this way. I will be able to see those who have the spine to challenge my word," the Emperor responded calmly. "Besides, the surveillance needs to be removed before Lelouch finds it."

"But my son will not be happy inside that place. He will get paranoid thinking too much. Do you want to drive him crazy?"

The Emperor gave a slight nonchalant shrug.

Marianne said nothing further on the matter. "How was your trip?"

"The ruins are in good order. At least this time I had a good reason to go that side. No one even will even suspect that I just picked up Lelouch on my way back from the real business I had gone out to handle," the Emperor. "Schneizel will have some questions, but by the time the truth dawns on him, he will be too late."

For now, he just had to watch his children fool around. They would be too occupied trying to outsmart each other while he handled important matters. Yes, the kids could play out in the field while adults stayed behind indoors dealing with the important matters that would change this world.

He would like for of them to remain ignorant of the truth. It would be much less of a hassle and he could amuse himself watching them plot. Well, with Lelouch's re-introduction to the chessboard, things were bound to become interesting.

"We don't have to worry about with Lelouch here," Marianne said. "I'm sure they will make good 'partners'" she paused. "Do you think there is a chance that they might work together? If they do that, it would make things a little difficult."

"Lelouch wouldn't want to work under anyone. He certainly doesn't like being told what to do and likes to think on his own feet. Schneizel can allow him to make his own decisions, but they would never truly work together. They are different and do not have the same agenda and even if they did, their methods are too different."

 **Area 11**

When Villetta went to see Jeremiah, she was very surprised to see the man frozen behind his desk. There was a small piece of paper on the desk, but he was not staring at it. He appeared to be staring at the space ahead of him. She did not get the chance to see the man like that often – perhaps there was something that had rattled him.

"Lord Jeremiah," Villetta called out in a worried tone for her boss.

She did worry about the man she had grown to like as a soldier and the leader of The Purist Faction. Life wasn't that bad under the man, so she could not complain and had nothing but respect for the man. Therefore, when he appeared troubled, she did worry.

"Lord Jeremiah!" Villetta called once again, but this time, her voice was loud and firm. The man had not responded to her first call. He hadn't even blinked or moved a muscle.

Whatever it was that he had heard or read: it must have been a great shock to him. It got her curious, but she did not rush to demand answers.

Jeremiah blinked when he finally registered Villetta's voice. He looked at the woman for a long minute before shaking his head to as if to clear his thoughts. "Villetta…" he said.

"Is something wrong?"

"Depends on how you look at it, but from my side, everything looks good… perhaps greater since the death of Marianne-sama."

He had just received a good report that could change everything. No, it didn't hold a possibility of changing things, it would change everything for him. If it was indeed true and he was not being messed with, then things would change. Of course, he would go on a rampage if the information he had received was false.

No one had the right to make him happy like this by giving him false information.

Perhaps his body language may not show it, but he was actually excited to hear that Lelouch was alive and well. At least this time, he would not go wrong. He would have to get the opportunity to do so, but he believed that he would. If Lelouch was his mother's son, then things would go alright.

He would still accept death if it was the punishment the prince was willing to dish out to him for failing his duties.

This information had to come true though. There hasn't been any confirmation from the Imperial Family. The Emperor should have said something, but he has not, neither any of the royal family members. Still, Jeremiah had received the information from a credible source. It had to do with Lelouch; he could not cast it aside.

"What is it?" Villetta asked, doing her best not show her impatience. The man obviously had something in mind, and it was killing her because she was seriously curious about what it was.

"I have received word that Lelouch vi Britannia is alive. I'm told that he just suddenly returned with the Emperor, but has been staying in a heavily fortified Aries Villa. Of course not many eyes have seen him and the Imperial Family has not said anything," Jeremiah said. "But no one would make a joke about something like this."

"Vi Britannia?" Villetta appeared to think for a few moments. "Weren't they dead? If I am not mistaken, that person was said to have died in this very country during the Britannia's invasion."

She knew Jeremiah had some ties with the Vi Britannia and spoke highly of Marianne, even though she had been a commoner. The man respected her and spoke of regrets for failing to protect her. But for someone who was reported to be dead for far too long, Villetta didn't think too highly of the information. It has been years after all, and no one has said a thing about it.

Vi Britannia line was dead.

Jeremiah shook his head. "It is either the death was greatly exaggerated or this report is false," He didn't want to believe that what he had read was false. Jeremiah wanted to believe it. "If prince Lelouch is indeed alive, it changes everything. This is an opportunity that I cannot miss: I'm going to speak to Prince Clovis to ask if it is true."

Villetta didn't like the man's tone. She narrowed her eyes, "And if it is true?"

"I will leave for Pendragon after speaking to the Viceroy."

Villetta Stared at Jeremiah as if the man was crazy. How could he be so selfish? He could not simply say that he was leaving them like that. He was the leader of the Purist Faction; he could not afford to do something like that.

Besides, for the so called pure bloods, why would be support someone who is a half-blood?

Villetta shook her head. Perhaps she was reading this wrong. She had not become where she was by jumping into conclusions. How long has she known the man anyway? Maybe there was a reason. Maybe he would only be gone to see the prince and then return to them. They could not do without their leader.

Kewell was a good person, he was alright, but he was not Jeremiah. There was only one Jeremiah and no one could replace his him in their faction.

"When will you return?"

"I might not return to the Purist Faction," Jeremiah said simply.

Villetta looked baffled by that response – almost nonchalant response. The man had fought for the Purist Faction with everything he had. He was here opposing the Honorary Britannian system, how could he just leave everything that had appeared to be what he was born to do?

"You're not serious Jeremiah!"

"I am," Jeremiah responded in a very serious tone. The Margrave stood from behind his desk and walked up to Villetta. He stopped just by her right side and placed a firm hand on her shoulder before speaking once again. "If Prince Clovis confirms that the 11th prince is indeed alive, I will be on a plane. The Purist Faction isn't really controlled by the Viceroy. I can leave.

If I do end up leaving, Kewell will be in charge. Well, I wouldn't really care what happens after. My life will belong to Prince Lelouch and what he lives for. If it is revenge, then I shall also live for revenge. Nevertheless, I will not forget you, Villetta. Never. I will not."

The Margrave walked away, leaving a speechless Villetta.

 **Ashford Academy**

When Clovis went up to see Nunnally, he was surprised to see Milly beside the Princess once again. She had been here the last time he came. He now knew she was from the Ashford family, but since they had nothing, he didn't value them. They used to have something back then, but now they had nothing. Besides, other families hadn't liked them very much for their support of Lelouch's mother.

Still, he could still be thankful that they had managed to take care of his brother and sister. What would have been of them if they had not taken them in? Of course, he wasn't going to go about publicly. He wasn't even allowed to talk about Lelouch in public as the Emperor said he would make the announcement himself.

People were asking questions because word had already spread through the Empire like a wild fire. Clovis was almost jealous of the attention Lelouch was getting now. He was a little thankful that the brother of his was under lockdown.

Was it right to think like that?

Clovis shook his head. Nobody could see his thoughts, so it was fine. Everyone had something hidden within.

"Nunnally," Clovis called with a smile as he settled down on a chair beside the princess. Today, he would not do the kneeling. That was a little low and out of the way. Once was enough, even for his blind sister.

"Brother Clovis," Nunnally said with a smile. "I was wondering when you'd return…" the smile on Nunnally's disappeared for a second. "Have you heard from brother? He said he would inform me when he lands, but he has not called, not even sent a letter. Well, a letter would take long, but I was expecting to hear from him once he lands."

Clovis sighed. He would have to break the news. Maybe he should have called to tell Nunnally about Lelouch's situation. He looked at Sayako – she was a number. He didn't comment on it, nor did his expression change. He would not even drink the tea she had offered.

Milly was also present but silent. How would he go about this with these people here? He could just tell them to disappear so that he can talk to his sister alone. Would they simply refuse a word of a prince of Britannia? They would not. Only those with a death wish would do something like that. In this land, his word was law.

Nunnally seemed to sense Clovis' dilemma. "You don't have to worry about Sayako and Milly…" she said.

"It is alright, mistress Nunnally, I will excuse myself," Sayako said. She could go do something in the kitchen.

Milly did not move a muscle even when Clovis was staring at her. The prince finally spoke after a long minute. "Are you my brother's girlfriend?" Well, she was here, and a former nobility. It wouldn't be off the mark to suggest she had something with his brother. He wouldn't advise for it to continue, but for now he was merely asking to know before he does anything.

Milly laughed, amused – not by the question itself but by the thought of Lelouch and girlfriend. "The only girl Lelouch's loves is his sister," she finally said after a few moments. Still, there was slight bitterness in her tone – it just slipped out, but luckily for her, no one noted it.

Nunnally agreed with a small nod. "Brother doesn't appear to be interested in relationships. Then again, I don't know much…" she tilted her head to the side. "Though, I wouldn't mind if you were his girlfriend," she said with a smile.

Clovis cleared his throat before the conversation could drag away from him. "Lelouch did arrive at Pendragon. The reason he was not able to call you is because he has no way to do so."

"What do you mean?" Nunnally asked, confused.

Milly assumed it was because he was cut off from any form of communication. And of course, anyone with the power to do that is the Emperor. How he went on about that, was something she could not conclude. At least Clovis was here, he would fill in the gaps.

"Lelouch has been locked up in Aries Villa since he landed. Father cut off any form of network – Lelouch can't use the internet, he can't watch TV and he can't make calls. He is not even allowed to set foot outside the walls of Aries Villa or talk to anyone. Not even Schneizel has been able to visit him. Father said he was being confined for a week while he decides what he will do with him," Clovis explained a bit nonchalantly as if it was a small thing.

He was certainly not worried about Lelouch's future. He was certain that Lelouch would be out soon and they would team up. He was already preparing for Lelouch to move in with him at the Viceroy palace. Of course, that would have to go through the Emperor first, but he would work out something out.

"Oh, brother…" Nunnally mumbled sadly, thinking of her dear elder brother. What could he be thinking now that he was cut from the world? He did not know anything and was all alone. Why could she not be there for him as he had been there for her?

Nunnally wanted nothing more than to get on a plane and go to her brother.

"Don't worry too much about him, Nunnally: I assure you, you will hear from him soon," Clovis said confidently. "Euphemia wanted to come, but Father forbade it until Lelouch is revealed to the public. He said you could stay here and finish your school though," Clovis before pausing. "OH, there is also someone who wants to see you."

"Who?"

"Jeremiah!" Clovis called out. "You can come in now!"

The Margrave was already beside the princess in the blink of an eye, tears in his eyes.

 **Pendragon**

Cornelia looked pissed off and Schneizel didn't have to guess what had brought upon the mood. She must have gone to the Emperor to 'demand' why she was not allowed to talk to her brother. It was a little unfair, she had thought and believed that he was dead buy was now being told that he was alive, yet not allowed to see him. It had to be frustrating to the woman who had left the battlefield just to see her brother.

Then again, didn't he also left negotiations in the EU just to talk to his brother?

"I can't believe father won't allow me to see Lelouch, he won't even give me a reason why!" Cornelia was tempted to cuss at that moment, but Euphemia was right behind her, looking a little lost – probably because she had been ranting furiously since they left the emperor's side.

The man had simply told her that she could not see Lelouch and he did not have to explain why she could not or why Lelouch was locked up in the first place. He had gone on to warn her against going against his wishes and then proceeded to dismiss her. What was even infuriating was that he had even asked her why she had even returned when she was busy with her duties.

Wasn't the return of Lelouch important? If a member of royalty who was thought dead was actually alive, then it was a reason to stop everything, including war just to celebrate. If she went to the battlefield now, she would mercilessly crush her enemies. Then again, how would that be any different from what she normally does?

"Calm down, Cornelia," Schneizel said smoothly. "There is no need to be infuriated about it. It won't change anything. Patience at this moment is key," the Prime Minister said.

For a moment, Cornelia looked at Schneizel harshly before sighing. "Not everyone is like you," she said.

"That might be true, but it cannot be helped at this time. Once father has made his mind, he cannot be convinced to think otherwise. I tried it once and now I just decided to wait for a week. We know that Lelouch is alive and well. I saw him myself. A day or two now and we will have him to ourselves. What is a couple of hours compared to the feeling of knowing that you will never see him again?"

Cornelia had to sit down after Schneizel had spoken. "Knowing that you won't see him again, is painful but this is just frustrating. You know you have something, you can see it, you can smell, but no matter how hard you jump, you just can't reach it."

Schneizel did not respond to Cornelia, he looked at Euphemia, "Out of everyone, I thought you'd be the one making the most noise. You were closest to Lelouch and Nunnally out of everyone else…"

Euphemia looked away when both Schneizel and Cornelia stared at her. "Well…" she started. "Clovis actually called me yesterday when he was with Nunnally and gave her the phone, so I was able to speak to her… he did say I shouldn't tell anyone about it though…" she added sheepishly.

Brother and sister just shook their heads.

"Still, Lelouch must be losing his mind inside that place," Cornelia said, composed now. "And considering what happened in there, it must not pleasant for him."

He was locked up in the home that took away his mother and left his sister blind and crippled. He had returned but was locked up as if it was his prison. He could contact the outside world because the Emperor had cut all forms of communication. He didn't even know what his fate would be after everything that has happened.

"I raised that point with father, but he would still not listen," Schneizel said with a shake of his head. The man had said that if Lelouch went insane, he would be sent back to Area 11 and the Empire would never admit to his survival, even if people do see him.

That was unlikely to occur though. Lelouch would not lose his mind, not in a place like this. Schneizel safely assumed that his younger brother held some unspeakable feelings towards the Emperor. If Lelouch had been indeed hiding from the Imperial Family, then it was safe to say that he was being forced back into the fold because the Emperor has some purpose for him.

Schneizel would not allow the chance to pass. Lelouch was not going to face the axe – he wouldn't even be surprised if the Emperor doesn't even punish his younger brother. The confinement was not punishment; it was merely a game. Their father was watching, binding his time to see how the pieces were moving before he does make his own move.

"Well, there is nothing to be done now," Cornelia said with a slight frown. Aries Villa was heavily protected that even she could not get in. She doubted even Schneizel would be able to smooth talk his way into the palace or opening the opportunity for Lelouch to escape for a few minutes. "What do you think father will do after Lelouch is summoned to the Imperial Court? I don't want to lose him again."

"Don't worry, sister," Schneizel said smoothly. "Lelouch will be just fine. I can assure you of that."

"How sure are you?"

Schneizel merely smiled but it was a response that would satisfy Cornelia – at least he hoped it would.

 **A Couple of Days Later**

It was finally time to face the music. For the first time Lelouch could look at the gates of Aries Villa and breathe a sigh of relief. He was finally going to leave those gates. He could be forgiven if he doesn't even come back tonight. He was missing so much; it felt like he had been starved inside the palace. There was a lot he didn't know, and a lot he needed to know.

The guards were certainly employed by the Emperor. There had been a man who had come to the palace, had fought with the guards when they refused to give him permission to enter the premises. At the end of the day, he had been sent to prison.

The woman cooking for him had informed him of it when he had backed her against a corner, and she had been forced to reveal the man's name was Jeremiah. It did not do much favour to the prince, as it was something that he could not use.

For now, he just wanted to speak to his sister, but he had yet to be given a phone. He was only being allowed to leave now because a limousine was waiting for him outside the gates. Just yesterday, a royal tailor had come to the palace to take his measurements and the royal white and gold clothes were delivered this morning.

And here he was, walking towards the limousine outside his gate.

Lelouch did not look surprised to see Schneizel inside the limousine. Perhaps it was because he had been starved of conversation with other people or because he was finally able to speak to someone he knew, Lelouch felt slightly happy. Of course, he did not smile, but he was happy – Even if it was Schneizel.

"Cornelia was worried that you might lose your mind," Schneizel started after Lelouch had kept his silence. The car started moving, slowly. "I have to admit, I worried a little. It appears there was no reason to worry, nevertheless…"

Lelouch said nothing; his eyes were focused outside. Just because he was happy to be finally out of that place didn't mean that he was going to be all chatty with Schneizel.

Without saying a word, Schneizel slipped out a phone from his pocket and dialled. The phone was on his put on his right ear. "Can I speak to Nunnally?"

That was the first thing that Schneizel said, but he was sure that the woman on the other phone would recognize his voice and hand over the phone to Nunnally without wasting time. His eyes were watching Lelouch firmly. The 11th prince's attention turned to him, his eyes staring at the phone hopefully, not at him.

"Nunnally, I trust you're still in good spirits since we last spoke… yes, I know it was last night… I have someone who wants to speak to you," Schneizel smiled thinly as he handed the phone to Lelouch. The prince more or less snatched the phone out of Schneizel's grasp.

It was indeed true, Lelouch was attached to his sister – he was like Cornelia. Both were strong people, but with one glaring weakness. For Lelouch it was worse because his sister was helpless without anyone by her side. It would prove to be a problem, but nothing that could not be solved.

Who knows, maybe this love for his sister would be one to push Lelouch towards greatness.

"Nunnally," It was a soft whisper. Perhaps he just didn't want Schneizel to hear what he was saying or it was just that he was trembling with both excitement and anger – directed towards the Emperor for making him miss his sister so much. He had worried. It was for the first time that a week had gone by that he had not heard from her.

Honestly, it had been hell.

Especially since he didn't know the Emperor's plans. The man could have sent his dogs to Area 11 and taken her away from him. She could have been used against him – that was the last thing Lelouch wanted. His sister was not to be used by anyone – not even the Emperor.

Schneizel just watched as Lelouch's mask slipped, a smile, relief on his face washed over. It was apparent that he was very happy to know that his sister was happy. Nunnally would be happy as well. Schneizel felt happy to be able to do something like this for his brother. Lelouch was still not supposed to have a phone, but who would tell?

The phone was his private thing. Its calls could not be traced, so he was safe, so was Lelouch.

He had figured that Lelouch would need a clear mind before speaking to the Emperor. It would do no good if his younger brother does one of the acts he pulled years ago. Well, he liked to believe that he had grown, but with a tantrum prone Lelouch, you never know.

Schneizel held out his hand, calling for his phone. Lelouch frowned, but he understood. Schneizel was only doing him a favour. The man had not been obligated to do this. Of course, he did have his own reasons. Even in a moment of weakness, Lelouch's mind would just not fail him. He had to be on his toes at all times in this place.

There was danger in all corners and if he was not careful, there would be hell.

The eleventh prince said his goodbye to his sister, telling her that he would call her again after he has spoken to the Emperor. Lelouch handed the phone back to Schneizel before speaking, "Thank you," he said a bit forcefully.

Schneizel merely smiled. "No strings attached," he said. "It does appear that you have grown a bit… but you should not be wary. I only want is best for you. Unfortunately, we don't have much time to talk. We will do that after your meeting with father.

"I don't think you have anything to worry about. Father has not been planning anything harsh. Then again, nobody really knows what he is thinking. In any case, you just have to be calm, and don't do anything stupid. Father will not wish to be disrespected in front of the royal court."

Lelouch looked outside the window – a much calmer expression reflected on the window. "I wouldn't do the same mistake twice. Circumstances have changed. Things are different, but the Emperor is still the same. For now, I am nothing. I denounced my claim to the throne, and that man responded by exiling me.

If I do something childish like that, it will be much worse. I have everything to lose now. Playing the obedient soldier is the best card I can play now…" Lelouch paused. "But I will not be a pawn in his chessboard forever," he said firmly.

Schneizel smiled. "You know the rules, Lelouch; a pawn can get promoted into any piece in the chessboard. It is all a matter of how you move other pieces and how you strategize."

 **Imperial Court**

Britannian aristocracy had gathered in the court with the Emperor siting in his throne, the Knight of One by his side, as he always was. Many had not been informed of the reason for the gathering, but they could make a good guess. It had something to do with the son of a commoner who many had thought they had seen last when he was exiled.

Lelouch was alive; this had just confirmed it. The Imperial family had not commented on the rumours and other princes and princesses wouldn't talk or they also didn't know anything. The Prime Minister, Schneizel, was the people who knew everything, but try getting information out of that silver-tongued prince.

"Introducing, the Eleventh Prince of Britannia and Seventeenth in line to the throne, His Highness, Lelouch vi Britannia," the royal announcer shouted as the prince entered the court with grace and his head held high.

Lelouch would not show these parasites fear; he would not be a coward in front of them. They were the cowards who could not defy the Emperor. Being in this very place with them watching him like hawks and the two-faced snakes they were repulsed him.

He wouldn't be surprised if some of them were wishing for him to just mistime a step and fall over to his death. Strange things have happened, but nothing would happen on this day. They could go back to the comforts of their lavish homes and dream again.

These were the people who had rejoiced when the Emperor exiled him. They had hated his mother with everything they had. Worthless bunch of insects. Lelouch really wished he could squash them, or just strip them of every tittle they had so they could live as commoners. He would gleefully laugh at their predicament.

With as much grace and elegance as he could muster, Lelouch strolled through towards the Emperor. Even though that man was looking at him carelessly, Lelouch didn't let it bother him; not even the fact that he indulged in the thought of someone bursting through the ceiling and getting a jump on the Knight of One while he lunges towards the Emperor.

He would strangle that man to death while these parasites watch and thereafter, he would proclaim himself as Emperor of Britannia.

That was just a thought anyway.

Reality was that he had to get on a knee before the Emperor. He did not stare down at the crimson floor. He stared back into the eyes of the Emperor. He would show the man that he was not a coward and would not bow his head for everything to flip him in all directions.

If the Emperor was waiting for Lelouch to say something, he would have been disappointed. The prince said nothing.

For a second, he thought the Emperor appeared amused.

But that thought was dispelled by a cold-hearted look that graced the man's eyes, accompanied by an oppressing aura that made him slightly afraid. Yes, this man controlled Britannia. He alone stood atop of Britannia and no one would openly challenge him. No matter how powerful they were.

Charles zi Britannia was a frightening man.

"Don't you have anything to say, Lelouch?" The Emperor dared him.

It was nothing more than a play of power. The man wanted to remind him of who was sitting on the throne. Lelouch had to be humble before the man; he didn't have to show any spine. He would not give it all. Nevertheless, playing defiance would not do him any good. It would only get him in trouble and earn him more enemies.

He didn't even want to look at Schneizel at the moment, but he could feel man's stare warning him against saying anything stupid.

"I have honoured your summons, your Majesty," that was all that Lelouch was willing to say. He would not say anything about playing dead until the Emperor brought it up.

"And?"

'What?' Lelouch was tempted to say, but he gritted his teeth and held back. He would not be baited into saying something stupid. The man was testing him; he would pass this little test. For the first time since kneeling, Lelouch stared into the floor. "I humbly wait to accept what you have called. If his Majesty wishes for me to apologize for the childish tantrum I threw years ago, I shall; if you wish for me to face death, I will humbly accept your judgement as a prince of Britannia."

He hoped that was good enough because he would not sink any lower than that. If the man pushed, he would snap.

The Emperor stood up. "Questions have been asked about Lelouch's survival, this is the answer," the man pointed at the prince.

When Lelouch looked up, he realized something; there were cameras.

"Lelouch vi Britannia has returned home after his exile." The man said nothing further. Music rang through the court and the Emperor strolled out.

Lelouch was baffled.

That was all? The man had called the court, and him just to say that?

He wasn't going to say anything about the fact that he had been hiding in Area 11 for all these years and that Nunnally was also alive? He was just going to play it as if this 'death' had been nothing more than an exile, and now he was being allowed back into the Imperial family because his term of exile had expired?

This had been possibly on live TV… the cameras were certainly just for that. The Emperor's story would stick, no one would know that he had been hiding from Britannia and no one would question the Emperor.

Before the vultures could hound Lelouch – who was still on his knees, Schneizel seized the opportunity to get in a word. They would listen; he was after all the second most powerful man in the Britannian Empire after the Emperor.

"Just one more thing," the Prime Minister said, with his flat smile in display. "We will be holding a banquet later on to celebrate my dear brother's return. Those welcome should come…"

Those welcome, huh?

It was going to be something private, no cameras, no reporters, just a couple of good people. After all, Schneizel would be the one to organize this little thing. Only those who were 'welcomed' meant those who he had invited. He was merely making a point. He could have gone without telling the public.

Lelouch stood up from his knees and the moment he did so, he was engulfed by a pink blur. Euphemia didn't care if there were people watching or if the cameras were still rolling; she was just happy to finally see her brother alive and well.

She was truly happy.

"Lelouch," Euphemia mumbled her arms all around the fragile prince. Tears were threatening to break free, but she did not let them. She would cry when she was alone.

For a second, Lelouch didn't know what to do. When was the last time someone hugged him so tightly? Not to mention in such a suffocating way that he was struggling to breathe. It could only be his beloved Euphemia. Perhaps the person he loved the most after his beloved younger sister.

She was no stranger.

Lelouch smiled despite his difficulty to breathe. "Euphie," the prince said in a whisper, a small smile on his lips.

"I'm so happy that you are really alive…" Euphie said happily.

"You'll be sad soon if you keep this up," Lelouch said light heartedly.

Cornelia was above the two in a matter of seconds. She separated them, peeling her sister from Lelouch. "You'll kill him Euphie, and you shouldn't hug him so tightly," she said sternly. The second princess yanked Lelouch by his right hand; he almost fell in a heap. Cornelia frowned. "You're still fragile as ever…" she smiled beautifully. "Nevertheless, I am truly happy to see that you are alive. Welcome back home, brother," she pulled the prince over for a hug.

The moment was ruined when someone walked up to the three. "I see the commoner has returned," Carine said as he walked past the small group. "It would have been best for everyone if you'd remained dead."

Lelouch stepped away from his elder sister and flatly smiled at Carine. "It is lovely to see you as well, sister and I look forward to seeing more of you in the many days ahead of us…"

Carine twisted around to retort, her lips parted but she closed them she saw the expression on Lelouch's face – there was a flat smile that just reminded her of Schneizel and the cold eyes that reminded her of the Emperor.

She snarled and left without another word.

Cornelia raised an eyebrow at the exchange. She didn't think that he would have responded like that. It wasn't a bad thing really. It was good that he had grown, but antagonizing members of royalty would not do well for him.

"You should be careful with your exchanges," Cornelia said calmly. "You're already not liked by the majority of the Imperial family and the aristocracy."

Lelouch sighed a bit tiredly. "I know," he said. Well, at least he was in a comfortable position right now. Things had gone a lot better than he had expected. Nevertheless, of course he didn't think this would be the end of it. Schneizel would probably lay out the options for him later on.

"I'm glad," Cornelia said. The woman then folded her hands across her chest. "You do have a lot of explaining to do…"

Before Lelouch could responded, a smiling Schneizel spoke. "What is there to explain, sister? Our brother had been exiled from home and now father has decided that the sentence is enough and he can come home. You know when you're exiled from home; an attempt to return will result in death."

It was a sound argument and a military woman like Cornelia would be quick to understand what he meant. Of course, the 'exile' wasn't normal with Lelouch. If he had tried to get back home then, he wouldn't have faced any death. Perhaps death threats from Britannian aristocracy, but not from the Emperor.

Maybe he was even saying this because he wanted to the first one to know what had happened.

"For now, I would suggest that we allow our brother time to solve a few things. He dodged a bullet moment earlier. We can all get along later on, even Clovis will have landed by then," Schneizel said. "Besides, Lelouch has a matter to resolve."

Lelouch stared at Schneizel for a long moment as he attempted to understand what it was that he needed to resolve.

Schneizel smiled. "If anyone refuses you access, tell them the order is coming from me," the prince said. "I have a few things to do myself, so I will see you later. Do not be late. Formal invitations will be sent later before noon."

 **Later**

Lelouch guessed it was now for the time to bring out the cards that Schneizel was hiding… they were in a small room, just the two of them, a chessboard placed between two small comfortable chairs. It has long since he was last lost a match. Schneizel was the only man he could never beat. He had drawn, but never won.

Never.

There was no taking it easy in a game with Schneizel. Lelouch knew that out of everyone, Schneizel was the one who did not understatement him. With how things have gone and what he has observed so far, to Cornelia, he was still just a kid. She would refrain from exposing some things to him and would try to shield him as she does with Euphemia.

Lelouch didn't want any of that. He had become an adult when the Emperor banished him.

Still, at least with Cornelia – if she is cleared from his mother's murder – he would have someone who he could count on without any strings attached. Overall, it wasn't looking so bad for him. Even if Schneizel would have his strings, he would still be able to play his own game. Not that he intended to be Schneizel's puppet.

Lelouch stared at pieces as Schneizel made his move.

"The powerful people you saw tonight are my backers, and some who are backed by me, some are being courted. Overall, I have relationships with them… mutual relationships," Schneizel said, his eyes staring at the board – he was focused.

"So, I was being paraded," Lelouch said, he glanced at the first prince – they seemed to have the same thought as their eyes met for a second, before returning to the game.

"More or less," Schneizel said, not bothering to hide it. "I have a lot of resources in my possession, but I am still nothing before our father. I believe that we can be something together. I know of your intelligence far better than anyone."

Lelouch frowned as he stared at Schneizel's pieces. He didn't seem too keen to make quick advances towards him. The man was busy playing his game in his 'yard'. He could not move recklessly. He would only end up being sucker punched quickly.

It was possible Schneizel was trying to see how he was going to play the game. Would he play it like they used to? Or would he play a different game that has matured due to his experiences in Japan? Lelouch still needed to see what kind of a game the prince would be playing. If he could understand it, he could plant his pieces in the right places.

"Why don't you start by telling me what that man has decided for me," Lelouch said, he could not keep his hatred hidden about 'that man'. Schneizel didn't comment on it though – he acted as if he had missed it.

"We can get to that after the game, but as you heard when you were introduced, you have been restored to where you were before you were sent to Area 11. Father has said he will not give you anything of his own, but you have access to everything your mother left behind. You will not be stopped from growing; no one will stand in the way, especially with me in your side.

"You might be just 17th in line, but that is just a number. A lot can change if you put enough work," Schneizel said.

Lelouch snorted at the thought of the first prince. "I assume despite being the crown prince, Odysseus is still a useless fool. Well, if you are the Prime Minister, and he is nothing, then he still is. That hardly surprises me though."

Schneizel smiled. "Don't speak like that of our brother, he has qualities."

"For being a tool in someone's game."

Schneizel didn't dispute this.

"I have said my share… why don't you tell me what happened?" Schneizel asked. "Father has his reasons, but I assume it is just to pit you against his other many children and make you useful instead of just living normally."

Lelouch shifted his gaze from the chessboard and looked at Schneizel for a second before returning to the game – which was starting to unravel by the way. "If I told you that I spent much of time gambling, would you believed."

"Surely you jest," Schneizel said.

Lelouch shrugged.

The Prime Minister didn't push. He could work around Lelouch in the end. Besides, the past didn't matter at this stage. If there was something that could cause damage, he would do damage control.

"You're being cautious," Schneizel said.

"Any reason I shouldn't be?" The man did throw this party for him and it was one that even some Knight of Rounds attended. He had to be cautious or else he would find himself in a deep hole he could not escape.

Schneizel didn't answer the question. "We will go on a trip tomorrow; I want to show you something."

Lelouch didn't let his frown show. He wasn't being given a choice. He hated moments like this. He really did. But he had to play along, for now at least. He was losing this game anyway, but the war was not yet lost. It was still early days.

"Aren't you going to tell me what the Emperor has decided for me?" The prince asked with a frown – it was what he was seeing on the chessboard that was making him frown.

"There is time for that," Schneizel said calmly. He looked at the board between him and his brother. … ah, he saw it now – the reason Lelouch was frowning. "We should go back to the party. I have yet to officially introduce you and it would be somehow if the main guest hides away while the party is still on."

 **End of chapter three**

 **Not much fireworks between Lelouch and the Emperor, but I prefer things this way. Lelouch is still going to have a private chat with the Emperor - perhaps fireworks will occur there. The story is taking quite a slow start, I think. In any case, the next chapter should start revealing the direction of the story.**

 **I know there are things that were cut off from the chapter, like Lelouch's meeting with Jeremiah, how the party started; they held nothing significant and would have just made the chapter long.**

 **Thanks for the reviews.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Lelouch walked through by the cells of a prison, heading toward a specific cell that housed a man who had tried to forcefully enter Arias Villa during his home arrest.

The prince shook his head; it wasn't house arrest, it was more like being grounded by his 'father' for doing something naughty in the eyes of the man.

The 11th prince snorted at the thought of the Emperor, but didn't allow his murderous thoughts towards the man to get the best of him. He needed to stay focused on the task at hand.

This wasn't the kind of place to allow his thoughts to drift off to the world of unknown. He usually lost himself in his thoughts when he drifted off to that narrow road.

Unlike other princes and princesses, he had no one to walk with him in such places – he was all alone without a guard. The others always had someone to walk with them, their entourage and knights if he could say.

Lelouch vi Britannia was just alone. The thing he had was Aries Villa. His beloved sister was far away from here, but at least she was with Sayako. He didn't have to obsess much over her safety.

A paranoid part of him thought that someone would take the chance to grab him from behind in this cells and silence him. It wasn't unthinkable and the nobles who hated him would not think twice about getting rid of him. He was a parasite to the royal family and stood against everything they valued.

He could not say that Schneizel was his partner, not at least now. He didn't want to depend on the man on everything. He wanted to solve a few things first on his own before he could get into deals with anyone. The 2nd prince would no doubt have his back, but it would come with some strings, and Lelouch didn't want that.

This was the reason that he had felt compelled to come here to see what this man wanted. It had to be something important for the man to have tried fighting against the guards placed at Arias Villa in his quest to see him.

When Lelouch arrived in front of the cell, he stopped and stared deep at the man in bound within. The man was bound, sitting by the corner, looking as if he was faraway.

"Jeremiah Gottwald, leader of the Purist Faction," Lelouch started, getting the man's attention.

Jeremiah's head snapped towards the royal prince. He tried to move his body towards the bars separating him and the prince, but his shackles would not let him move. Yet, he struggled until he fell down flat on his face. The man still attempted to crawl towards the prince.

"My prince." Jeremiah said with all the joy one could muster.

Lelouch was alive, he was here. he could see him with his own eyes. He had talked to Nunnally, everyone said Lelouch was alive, but they had refused to allow him to see Lady Marianne's son. Jeremiah was truly happy to see the prince, he wanted to cry, but he did not, he held himself.

The joy was suddenly replaced by the look of bitterness, sadness and anger over his failure to protect Marianne, to be there for Lelouch and Nunnally when he was needed. He had failed to do his job, he was a failure. But he was here, alive and well. Inside, his heart, he wanted to atone for his failure, in any way the prince felt it would be worth his failure.

Despite his regret, Jeremiah was truly happy that Lelouch and Nunnally were alive. This was a miracle, he had a chance to do something to correct his error. If given the chance, he would serve to the heart of his soul and until there was nothing left inside of him.

And even then, if his body could move, he would continue to serve.

Lelouch raised an eyebrow seeing the expressions from the man. it was something else. Not what he expected. He could not really hide his surprise over the man's actions since he spoke. How much of a fight had the man put if he was willing to crawl just to get closer to him?

"I'm truly happy to see you, my prince. When the news broke, I left my post and spoke to Prince Clovis. He was even willing to allow me to see Princess Nunnally…" the man's mask faltered at the thought of the princess.

Yes, if he had done his job, Nunnally would not have gone through what she did; she would not have been in the way. He would have protected her with everything in his might, she would still have been the same lively girl who ran around Aries Villa with Princess Euphemia, chasing after Lelouch for one of the delightful games.

Those had been the good days, but they were nothing of a memory now and it was because he had failed to do his job.

"Your prince?" Lelouch repeated the words.

"You don't remember me?" Jeremiah asked. He would not be surprised nor wounded if the prince said he didn't remember him. He could introduce himself once more again, speaking of the good days in Aries Villa.

"I do remember you, but why are you insistent on seeing me? I don't owe you anything and I didn't make any deal with you," Lelouch stated.

Who even called vi Britannia 'my prince?' To the Empire's aristocracy he didn't deserve to be called a prince. He was nothing more than a child of a commoner with the Emperor's blood running through him. It was just a status, but nothing that spoke of power or intelligence. Of course, the Emperor would not preach such a message, it went against his beliefs.

Lelouch did find the name calling rather amusing though. Even though his half siblings were of noble origins, they would not be princes and princesses if not for the Emperor's blood. He had a commoner's blond but his mother had been better than all those who claim to be superior because of noble birth.

Jeremiah looked down, "If you do remember me, you'd know that I was supposed to protect your mother and I failed in that duty. I didn't just fail her, I failed you and Princess Nunnally. I know there is nothing I can do bring her back, but my prince, if you allow me, let me serve you with my body and soul."

Lelouch smiled. Wasn't it something that the man who led a purist faction that went against people like him was calling him 'my prince' and was crawling down the ground for him. Well, if he didn't know the man, he would have found this to be suspicious.

The Eleventh prince turned away from the man.

Jeremiah thought Lelouch was leaving without responding, and raised his head as he spoke. "Prince Lelouch; if you don't have any uses for me, I cannot live with myself knowing that I failed and you can take my life away if you feel that is what I deserve!"

Lelouch didn't respond.

"Guards!" He called out.

He turned to Jeremiah, who had a rather firm look on his face. He appeared determined for any judgement he would deliver. Lelouch smiled at this. And a few moments ago, he was worried that he had no one by his side.

Who could have thought that a person like this was waiting for him?

But nothing would pass though. He still needed to test things before allowing the man to do as he wanted. Jeremiah had been working at Arias Villa, there had to be suspicion. It would be naïve of him to just take the man for his word without asking any deep questions.

When the guard arrived, Lelouch gave an order. "Release this man." It was a firm word from the prince.

The guard looked hesitant for a moment, not knowing what to do. He wanted to ask why because they had been told not to allow the man to go.

When Lelouch saw that the guard was being slow, he turned to him, "Lelouch vi Britannia," he dragged the words to emphasise that he wasn't just some brat, "has ordered you to release this man, why are you still standing there?"

The man straightened up, "We were told not to let go of the man."

Lelouch almost snorted at the response. Long ago, he would have snapped at the man for questioning the authority of a prince. But he had come to know that this given power was nothing. He may be a prince, but people were still willing to treat him with disdain in an open way.

Yet, Lelouch felt like reminding the man who he was, even though he had spat and cursed on his status as a prince. He had renounced his claim to the throne and was then banished by the Emperor. He had hated Britannian royalty and everything that had to do with it.

"What is your name?" Lelouch asked. But still didn't have the patience to wait for the man to respond. "Since Schneizel is the one who sent me here, you better hope that the person who gives you orders is of higher rank than the Prime Minister…"

 **Aries Villa**

Lelouch didn't like the fact that he had used Schneizel's name in order to get what he wanted without a fuss. He truly hoped that the second prince did not end up learning of it because if he does, it would be mentioned in one of their future talks. It would certainly be used as evidence that he does need the man's help for survival in this den of lions and vultures.

He wouldn't be having these thoughts if his word carried weight over it. It would not last long though. He was nothing now, but he would get hold of power within Britannia, even if he had to use every trick in the book to get it, he would do so. His word had to carry authority.

Lelouch shook his head; now wasn't the time for such thoughts, he had Jeremiah to deal with.

The eleventh prince was sitting at the stairways of his palace, with Jeremiah kneeling just below, looking back at him. The man wasn't speaking, he hadn't said anything on the way back. Perhaps he was waiting for him to say something after his confession.

Or maybe it was the gun that was playing on his fingers. He had taken it from the guards at the gates. However, he hadn't been pointing it at the man. It was just dangerously playing on his fingers. Lelouch doubted a warrior like Jeremiah would actually fear a small gun when he had seen much bigger weapons in the battlefield.

"Jeremiah," Lelouch started in a calm yet very hardened tone. "I will not forgive anyone who was involved in my mother's death, even if that person is my half-sibling. I will get my revenge on anyone who was involved. It might take some time since I have nothing now, but I will do it eventually, with my own hands." The black haired prince clocked the gun and pointed it straight at Jeremiah's forehead. "Tell me, Jeremiah, did you have anything to do with my mother's death?"

"Never my prince!" Jeremiah denied any involvement in a firm tone. "I would never plot anything against Lady Marianne. It is nevertheless, up to you to say that you believe my word or not."

Lelouch stared at the margrave for a long minute before throwing the gun at him. Jeremiah caught the gun with both hands and looked at Lelouch questionably. "Prince Lelouch?"

"I believe you Jeremiah Gottwald, but that doesn't mean I trust you. You must earn my trust," Lelouch stated. "In any case, you say that if I don't find use for you, you would not have any purpose of living, but Jeremiah, you have been living a rather high standard life in my supposed death… what makes things different now?"

"I-"

"You don't have to answer, Jeremiah," Lelouch said, slightly amused by the man's stuttering. "What do you know, Jeremiah?"

Jeremiah shook his head. "I do not know anything. The Emperor shut down the investigation launched by Princess Cornelia."

Lelouch narrowed his eyes. Everything just turned back to his half-sister. Clovis had said the same thing and he had included his other brother. Lelouch didn't find any surprise in Schneizel's involvement because the man was very influential within the Empire. But he hadn't known the white prince for having anything against his mother.

Then again, he had been a naïve brat back then.

Lelouch thought about his former self with distaste.

Had he not been foolish to think that uncaring man would listen him because he was a prince, perhaps he would have stayed around and learn something about his mother's assassination. He was still without any shed of doubt thought m that the Britannian aristocracy was involved in it. Maybe even the Emperor himself. There was no telling what that man could do.

But how was he going to go about things? He could get around Cornelia just fine, but Schneizel was another monster. There was no way he could go about it subtly without the man noticing. Just to avoid being caught red-handed, he would have to go about it straightforward without any fear. If his brother was serious about working with him, he would have to allow something to 'slip.'

Looking back at Jeremiah, the Prince spoke. "I see." He said. "No one seems to know anything. But I must get something from Cornelia and Schneizel. If I can't get anything from them, then it has to come from the Emperor. If so, it would take years of planning…"

Lelouch went into thought after those words left his lips. He would have to play the loyal prince of Britannia if he was going to get close to the Emperor. There was no way to go about it. Becoming an enemy would just be painting his beloved sister as a target. Charles zi Britannia was cold enough to make his sister disappear for going against him.

Lelouch gave Jeremiah a stern look as he spoke. "Jeremiah, in this den of vultures, only the strong and shrewd survive. Those who are weak, and cannot negotiate for themselves, are devoured. You should know this better than anyone considering what you have represented."

More than that, it was the Emperor's beloved bed time story. The strong deserved to rule and the weak would always be devoured. The man had said that his mother had been weak, that was why she was assassinated. Lelouch had been incensed when the god-forsaken bastard uttered those words. to add an insult to the injury, the man then exiled him along with his crippled younger sister.

Before the man's eyes, she was a weak person who couldn't be of any use. She was useless; he had no use for worthless tools. Yes, all the man's children were just pieces on a chessboard. The moment one piece becomes useless; it was thrown away. He held no attachment to any of his children; they were all just advocates to spread forth his bedtime story.

"I will not allow myself to become prey to Britannia's aristocracy. I will survive this battle, Jeremiah, and I will not just survive it. I will win it and one day, I will get my revenge…" Lelouch said passionately. "For that to happen, I need people I can trust, people who are dependable. I need you, Jeremiah."

"My life is yours, my prince!" Jeremiah was quick to say without a shed of doubt. There was nothing but resolute in his tone and the expression he wore – the man was dead serious. He would follow the prince even to the depths of hell. It would no longer be doing what was right or wrong, but about following his prince and ensuring that his dreams are fulfilled.

Jeremiah would live for Lelouch.

"Good." Lelouch smiled. "Of course, you're not enough. I need to know what I am dealing with, who is the enemy, who can be trusted and used. I need information. I need resources. As it stands, I have nothing but the name that the Emperor gave me. As much as I resent that man, and curse everything about him, being a prince has its own advantages. Even though I am still vi Britannia who has nothing, I am still a prince. These privileges will give me a good start."

Cornelia was already an established military commander. There was no one who could speak with her when it came to military command. The good thing with his elder sister was that she had no interest in politics; she was a soldier at heart. Yet, that didn't take away the fact that she had support and was a force to be reckoned with. The only one who could mess with her was with Schneizel, but his brother was too cold heartedly brilliant to do that.

He didn't have to speak about the Second Prince. Nevertheless, those two were his main opponents. The other princes and princess had powers and influence because of their families… but none of them were smart enough to worry him. But of course, with these vultures, one could never write the off.

"What do you need me to do my prince? If you want me to recruit trusted people, I will be more than willing to do so. I know a few people would follow me. I also have a few connections myself."

"Your choice to leave the Purist Faction may not have earned you many friendlies, but with your actions, it is likely that the faction won't survive for far too long. In any case, you gather the profiles of those who you think will be good additions and I will look at them." Lelouch said.

The Eleventh prince stood up. "I'm going to rest a bit. In the meantime, feel free to survey the palace to ensure that it is secure. If there is anything you feel is lacking for security, tell me, and I will try to gather the funds to get it done. Schneizel should come here in about four hours. Lead him to the study when he does show up."

"Hai, my prince." Jeremiah said with a grin. He was already excited that he was beginning to work. Things have gone far better than he had expected.

Lelouch ignored Jeremiah's smile and walked away from the man. He was already browsing through the contacts on his cell. He needed to get in touch with someone. Finding the numbers he was looking for, Lelouch dialled.

 **Later**

As usual, the chessboard was sitting between Lelouch and Schneizel. The former felt as if the second prince was using the game to poke into his head. But of course, Lelouch wasn't going to make it so simple for his brother. He already owed the prince; he didn't need him to learn of everything about him, including his weakness. He still needed to keep some secrets of his own.

"I thought we should play this before you begin your duties." Schneizel said, his eyes staring at the board inventively. "Once you begin working, there won't be much time for pleasure."

"You ended up not telling what I will be doing." Lelouch said with a glance at his elder brother.

The man had said he would tell him the fate that the Emperor had deemed was sufficient for him but he did not. Something had come up before Schneizel could say something, or perhaps it had been intentional. He was dealing with the Prime Minister of Britannia; you could never say for sure about anything when it came to the man.

"About that…" Schneizel paused as he moved his piece. "I wanted you to join me in politics, but father said that you could also do well in Military. I was rather disappointed with that thought. Your talent can be used playing in the high table with me. But you know our father, once he has said something, no one can change it."

Piloting nightmares was for the hard-headed people like Cornelia. Lelouch had a keen mind, he could play well with him. He did get the game after all. Besides, it was better for his dear little brother to be somewhere he could see him. Not exactly micro manage his every little move, but Lelouch was already far behind the others, and for him to grow quickly, he needed his helping hand.

"So, I'm going to Military…" Lelouch said.

"You won't go to Military academy. He says there is no time for that and if you're truly his son, born of superior blood, you should naturally excel without the need of training. If you're simply given command over Britannian forces, it would create some problems with the chain of command. At least I tried to reason that with father, but he refused to listen to anything I said. In any case, you will shadow me for the next month to learn about politics."

Lelouch blinked as he looked up to his brother. "I thought you said I was going to Military." He said.

"Did I say that?" Schneizel said with a smile. "But yes, you will be joining Military. You have to at least know something about politics. The game is a dangerous one and appearances really do matter as well as who you associate yourself with."

Everything mattered in the game but it would not be easy for Lelouch to gain support with the Aristocracy given his background. Schneizel knew that Lelouch was not the most favoured person. No, that was rather watering the reality bit down. Some people would not be against the idea of killing his brother or even silencing him to the point where he was nothing more than just another commoner trying to play with nobles.

There were other useless princes who didn't have much. However, Lelouch was different. Schneizel could sing praises to and about his brother in ways people could think he was exaggerating – and maybe he would, a little – but that would only be because Lelouch was someone he valued.

Lelouch glanced at his half-brother for a moment before looking back at the chess board. "I would rather not become that yes man we call the first prince. Politics are your kind of thing, I prefer to take the stand and fight for what I stand for. You always use other people, but I like to take the lead."

"All methods are effective, it depends on how you position yourself. There are times I have to play my role as well. Like I said, it depends on how you position yourself…" Schneizel looked up to Lelouch for a second before adding. "But I sense that you mean to take the lead in the battlefield."

The idea didn't please him the least, but he wasn't the one who decided. Whether he liked it or not, Lelouch was going to command a Knightmare with Cornelia and he would enter the battlefield because their father had commanded that it be so.

Perhaps he was merely testing the strength of the Eleventh prince. Surely, if Lelouch does tremendously well in politics with him, their father would have him go back there once he is done with his fair share of military learning.

Schneizel wouldn't be mad if Lelouch fails in Military. He wouldn't even be against the idea of setting things for Lelouch to fail. Of course, once things were over and his father has shoved his brother towards his path, he would have to confess. However, none of that would matter because Lelouch would be by his side and perhaps a little more motivated to give his all.

"Yes." Lelouch said. "But it all depends on what father has in store for me."

"Speaking of which…" Schneizel started slowly. "He wants to see you. I'm not sure what it is about, but it probably has something to do with your deployment."

Another meeting with that man – Lelouch wasn't really excited by the idea. But he still had to go. "He has my numbers, next time tell him to call me directly."

The Prime Minister smiled. "You know I can't do that. But if you really feel the message should be passed, you can tell him yourself when you do go to see him." He looked at Lelouch, just to see his reaction.

Lelouch had no reaction to Schneizel's response. "What else brought you here?"

"Prepare yourself in three days. I want to show you something, but I must first deal with some things with regards to my dialogue with the EU. Once I have shown you this, we will talk over a few things and then you can begin your training…"

"Before I leave…" Schneizel stared fully at Lelouch. "Tell me, what are you planning on doing? We should avoid doing anything disastrous at this stage. The last time you threw a fit, you had yourself exiled along with Nunnally. Father has forgiven you once, he won't do it again, and I would rather not lose you again, brother."

Lelouch stared back; it didn't need his genius mind to figure that Schneizel was talking about the incident that had him demanding the emperor for answers – his mother's assassination. He could not and would not forget about that incident and he would not be satisfied until he has killed whoever was responsible for it. All bets were on the Emperor, but of course, that didn't mean that suspicions were off from Cornelia and this man before him.

Those two had direct knowledge to what happened just after his mother was killed. All questions he has asked so far led him to the two. They had to know something or at least be responsible for it. Of course, if they were responsible, Lelouch would not forgive them either. Even if it was Cornelia, he would put a gun through her head and murder her.

Still, Lelouch hadn't expected Schneizel to directly discuss the matter with him. He had been killing himself trying to figure a way in which he could ease on the subject with the brother of his…

"You're talking about my mother's assassination… or rather, if I am still demanding answers as I was before the Emperor threw me into hell…" Lelouch said calmly.

Schneizel nodded: it was reasonable for him to bring the matter up before they go anywhere. He didn't want a liability on his team, he wanted someone he could trust. Lelouch was smart, but with emotions, he tended to display them rather affectionately, especially when he was angry. Even as they spoke, his deep hatred for the Emperor could not be hidden.

The Prime Minister didn't have a problem if he was like this when it was just the two of them, but if other people were involved, it would be a problem and someone would use that to their advantage. For him, who wanted to bring Lelouch under his wing, it would not be a good story to read.

"I want to believe that you have grown and won't do something stupid again… Considering how you handled yourself last time when you were before the Emperor, I have some confidence, but it doesn't help to be sure. I don't care what you do in your free time but if its consequences are bad for me, I want to deal with it now before anything else…" Schneizel explained.

From that response, Lelouch had the feeling that Schneizel wasn't going to be of any help in the matter unless he really begged for it. Either way, it didn't seem as if the man knew much. If he did, he would have told him already. There was no one that Schneizel feared, but if the Emperor was involved, and it didn't benefit him in any way, the Prime Minister would not involve himself.

If he promised something, there was a possibility, but Lelouch wasn't going to sell his soul to this devil. His life was already in the hands of another devil…

"Have no worries; I have grown. I'm no longer that naïve child." Lelouch said in a firm tone. "In this life; we take actions thinking of our own convenience, the intension never to trouble anyone, but we tend to ignore the consequences of our actions. I'm above that one-sided thinking. So, when I tell you that you have nothing to worry about, you have nothing to worry about, brother."

Perhaps saying 'brother' was merely for effect, but Lelouch didn't think too much of it. He was pleased when Schneizel nodded with that flat smile of his. "Excellent; we will talk once you have spoken to father… that is when I take you out to see how you must survive."

Lelouch merely nodded in response.

He was slightly seething about his loss once more; perhaps that was a bit of an exaggeration, he was frowning upon that loss. No matter, he could never defeat Schneizel. He simply could not be pleased that he could get a draw. He did that when he was just eleventh… hasn't he grown ever since? And his playing style has evolved.

The prince shook his head and walked the Prime Minister out of the palace. The passages were silent, but Lelouch did not mind. The silence gave him time to think and he could be aware easily if an enemy was making moves on him.

Once Schneizel was inside his car, Lelouch turned away, heading back to his lonely palace. As he was walking up the stairway, Jeremiah swiftly came to him. the man seemed on guard. Perhaps he was thinking about what happened before. The incident had occurred on these very stairs. He had seen his mother lying in a pool of blood, with his younger sister hidden in her embrace.

The very thought of the memory made Lelouch clench his jaws; he would get his sweet revenge, even if it was against the man who sought world domination.

"Are you okay, Your Highness?" Jeremiah was quick to ask as soon as he saw the anger within the prince.

Lelouch merely turned his eyes towards the man; a moment ago, he appeared on guard, and now he seems more than ready to pounce on whoever was causing him to anger. Was there anything else he could add about the man's loyalty?

"There is nothing to worry about, Jeremiah." Lelouch said calmly, his anger washed away. "I need you to do something for me. It's an errand, I would have Emma do it, but it requires your knowledge and experience with IT equipment…" Truth be told, he had already drawn a specific list on what he wanted to buy. There would be no need for Jeremiah to think over anything, he just needed the man to at least understand what he was going to buy.

Jeremiah smiled; it was another task being given to him by his prince. "What do you need me to do, my prince?"

 **The Following Day**

Walking into the Imperial court, Lelouch felt as if he was walking into the jaws of death. It had nothing to do with his deep hatred of the Emperor, which could not be explained in words, but perhaps the underlying fear of the man. Lelouch hated Charles with everything he has, but that didn't mean that the man didn't make him feel anxious with just one look.

Emperor could end his life at any moment.

The thought that was not only serving at the Emperor's pleasure but also living at his pleasure made the anger inside of him bubble to dangerous proportions. Had it not been because he had learned from his mistakes, he would have surely sped towards the man and wished for a gun to materialize into the palm of his hand so that he could put a bullet through the man's head.

That was just a wild thought though. The reality was cruel; he had to swallow his bitter feelings and keep an expressionless mask just to stop his emotions from showing. He could not do anything reckless at this stage. He had to play his part before the Emperor.

At least there were no glaring eyes of Britannian aristocracy wishing for him to mistime a step and fall to his death. How Lelouch resented those fools. Yet, again, he could not do anything about it. Well, at least now. He was but a powerless prince who could only cling on to the privileges that came with being the Emperor's son.

He would grow powerful though. The tools for his growth were available. He would expect some people to sabotage him, but that was something he could live with. It would give him a chance to eliminate some nuisance who wanted to stand in his way to glory.

If he grew like Schneizel, he would not be afraid of his life when the Emperor called to see him. The Prime Minister was someone who has grown ridiculously powerful that even the Emperor could not just make him disappear. However, if Schneizel crossed a line, he would pay. The Emperor was still powerful and if anyone dared go against his word, he or she would pay, and no one in the Empire would do anything about it, even if it were Schneizel who was being punished.

The eleventh prince shut off his thoughts for a moment as he knelt and faced the floor for a moment before looking back at the Emperor with a defiant look on his face. He wasn't about to show fear to the man. The Emperor was a mad dog; he could sense fear miles away and if he made the mistake of allowing the man to sniff it out, he would pay dearly by being toyed with.

Charles was only amused by the look on Lelouch's face; well, it was what he expected from his rebellious son. Lelouch had to have a bit of spine for things to proceed smoothly. If the prince didn't show courage, Schneizel would walk all over him. The Emperor didn't fear that though; If Lelouch was still the same person who dared demand that he do something about his murder's assassination, then he would not allow the Second to do as he pleases with him.

The Emperor was optimistic for his son's future after all.

"Schneizel said you wanted to see, Your Majesty." Lelouch said to his father in a slightly cold tone.

Perhaps it was for amusement, but the Emperor narrowed his eyes ever so slightly before speaking. "Is that how you speak to my, my unworthy son?" The man demanded calmly, yet his tone had a chilling effect on Lelouch's spine.

His son's reactions may amuse him but Lelouch still had to learn his place. Charles wasn't going to make the mistake of allowing Lelouch to think that he could get away with anything. No, he might be slightly favouring the prince, but that would end soon once he has settled down.

Lelouch would have to fight his own battles and would not be treated differently from his other children. Well, many would question if he was really favouring the prince, but before the Emperor's eyes, this was favour, as minor as it was. Who other of his children get to behave as Lelouch does and still gets a red carpet on his return from exile?

Lelouch gritted his teeth for a second before toning his voice down a bit. "I am here as you have requested, your Majesty." Lelouch said.

He only said those words to avoid saying he was sorry for using a cold tone when addressing the Emperor. Besides, there was no way he could say 'father' without spitting out like it burnt his tongue.

The Emperor stared for a moment before giving a ghost shrug. "Schneizel should have already informed you of your duties. I don't expect disappointment from you, Lelouch. You're not getting anything from me, however, you will have everything your mother worked hard for…"

Charles paused for a moment as he thought of something that would make things interesting. "You must prepare yourself… I may decide to marry you off to some princess or one of the daughters of some Duke. Your sister is still an option, but you just have to satisfy me enough that I don't have to think of her… but I am sure you can do that, yes?"

Speaking of his sister so casually… Lelouch couldn't help but glare at the man for such a behaviour. He would not allow Charles to touch his sister, even if it meant selling his soul to the devil or working to hi bones to make the man happy. As long as his sister was safe and at the end of the day, he got to think of this revenge and move pieces accordingly, Lelouch would endure everything.

"I understand."

"Good…" The emperor said. "Now, for the reason I called you here…"  
 **  
**A couple of minutes later

Lelouch walked out of the Imperial court, looking much more relieved than anything. At least things hadn't taken a turn he wouldn't like. His life hadn't been made much more miserable than it was already. The threat of marriage wasn't a big deal, at least now that he was thinking about it.

"Prince Lelouch." Jeremiah dutifully called to his prince as soon as the teen stepped out of the hall. He hadn't gone in, but remained outside.

Jeremiah wanted to ask if everything had gone well, but Eleventh prince had a look on his face that the former Purist Faction leader could not even read. Well, from what he has seen so far, Lelouch would have been ranting if things had gone awry, or perhaps brooding.

"Let us just go home, Jeremiah." Lelouch said. "The more I stay around here, the more I give time for opportunists to approach me. For now, I would rather avoid members of the royal family."

He didn't wish to trade insults with anyone and just take some threats with a smile on his face; he wanted to focus on rooting himself to something that would give him some standing in the Empire. Power was everything when dealing with these vultures - It was the only thing they understood. Without it, he could not even speak the same language as them.

Jeremiah nodded; their car was just waiting for them. He led Lelouch towards it before he spoke. "I received a call from the guards at home; they said Princess Cornelia is at the house along with Princess Euphemia. Given their standing, I ordered for them to be shown inside… I hope I did nothing wrong."

Lelouch shook his head. He didn't have a problem with Euphemia. She was the second person he loved the most anyway. He didn't hate Cornelia either, he just wanted to deal with the issues that revolved around her and his mother's death. She was a suspect, even though Schneizel had made it clear that the answers lied with the Emperor.

"No; you did well, Jeremiah." Lelouch said calmly.

 **Aries Villa**

When Lelouch returned home, he found his sisters waiting for him at the gardens of Aries Villa; the two were lying under a shade, talking about something.

The scene just reminded Lelouch of his sister's one big weakness – Euphemia. Now, even though Lelouch knew that, he didn't think of going as far as to use his sister in that kind of a game. Euphemia was someone he would rather protect than use.

Well, Cornelia was no different from him in that regard was she? The Emperor could have them both dancing on his palm with threats to their younger siblings. As Cornelia would do anything for her sister, so would he. There was the fact that Cornelia was a soldier to the core, following orders was something she knew doing. He couldn't even imagine her life without military.

"Lulu…" Euphemia said happily as she tried to get up. She wanted to get up and hug her dear brother. But Cornelia ground her by pulling her backwards. "Sister...?"

Cornelia shook her head. "Lelouch is a teenage boy… Euphemia. You mustn't hug him as you did before."

Euphemia raised an eyebrow, "But he is my brother." She said.

Lelouch looked amused more than anything. Cornelia would always be protective of her sister. Although he was following where the Second princess was taking her thoughts, Lelouch didn't give it much of a thought because he really didn't have such interests in woman. Besides, Euphemia was his dear sister.

Cornelia didn't say anything in response to Euphie. She merely got up and walked over to Lelouch. "What did father want?" She asked, standing just inches away from him, her scrutinizing eyes watching his face like a hawk.

"He wanted to confirm what our dear brother had told me about my duties from now on..." Lelouch said calmly.

Cornelia stared for a moment. She then raised her right hand and placed her fingers on Lelouch's chest. Without even warning the prince, she pushed back. Lelouch fell back rather pitifully as if he was this fragile thing that could not balance itself – a look on shock was on his face as fell.

"Prince Lelouch!" The Dutiful Jeremiah shouted as he ran towards his prince. Although he received a warning glare from Cornelia, that honestly scared him, he still didn't stop rushing to the aide of his prince.

"I'm not attacking him." Cornelia said in a cold tone. "I like you dedication to him though, but at the same time, I dislike that disrespect." She shook her head.

Euphemia spoke the thoughts that made Cornelia shook her head. "I'm sure Guilford would do the same if the situation had been reversed. Knowing how much he loves you, sister, he would have responded with a Knightmare…" the Third princess said with a large smile as she walked over to Lelouch – who was still lying down.

Cornelia coughed at her sister's suggestive tone. "In any case, will you really survive Military Lelouch? How can you when you are this physically weak? I'm sure even Euphie has more energy than you!"

She was worried about Lelouch joining military. If there was something, she could do to stop his deployment, she would have done so, but the Emperor would not take it, and Schneizel had said he had tried as well. Military was dangerous as one had to put their lives at risk. Cornelia loved her brother too much to bear him going through the situations that came with piloting a nightmare.

Well, she could still watch over him in Military… she just had to make sure that he stayed close to her.

"Don't bully Lulu, sister." Euphie said, smiling, as she gave Lelouch her hand to help him get up.

Lelouch took Euphie's hand but didn't get on his feet. He settled down before looking as his elder sister. "That was rather pathetic." He said clearly not happy. What had wounded his pride was the fact that Euphie had said his elder sister was bullying him.

Was he that weak? He was going to pilot a Knightmare and would need to be physically strong to cope with the demands of being soldier. He was sure he couldn't even complete a single minute of Military drills without sitting on his butt out of weariness. He had always avoided those classes that called him to enter the gym.

Seeing the look on Cornelia's face, Lelouch was certain that he would be forced to train physically before anything. Cornelia would make him go through rigorous training because she was an overprotective elder sister. Lelouch frowned at the thought of being forced to sweat by Cornelia. He would not have any way to avoid the training and if he did as he did back at the Ashford academy, Cornelia would certainly 'punish' him.

When that thought passed through his head, Lelouch felt like he was a child and Cornelia was his mother.

"I can take care of myself, sister." Lelouch forced out the words.

Cornelia shook her head. "No, you can't." The woman said in a stern tone. "Don't worry, even though father said there is no time for you to go to Military academy, when you come to join me, I will have people ready to train you. I would rather not, but since nothing is going to change father's mind, it is best to make sure that you're prepared."

Lelouch visibly frowned.

"It will be good for you, your Highness." Jeremiah said with a smile. "I wouldn't mind even giving you a helping hand."

"Since when do you decide what is best for me, Jeremiah?" Lelouch asked.

Cornelia ignored the prince and turned her focus on Jeremiah. "It is has been some time since we last saw each other, Jeremiah Gottwald." The Second princess said before turning towards her brother once more. "At least you have chosen someone capable to watch your back." She said.

Lelouch shrugged. "I doubt you came to bully me, as Euphie says." He said.

"I'm returning to the battlefield, but I want to drop by Area 11 first to see Nunnally. Euphie also wants to go but I can't let her go alone. We will go together. I'm told father doesn't want you returning to that country, for now at least."

"So, we came to ask if there was anything you wanted to give Nunnally." Euphie said excitedly.

Lelouch was silent for a couple of moments; his beloved sister. He could not help but smile sadly at the thought of her. He had truly missed the days he used to tuck her in bed, the days he wouldn't go to school just to take care of her because she was sick, even though Sayako was there.

"Just tell her that I love her." Lelouch said calmly. "I have already sent everything needed."

"Your Highness." Jeremiah started. "Would it best for me to leave with them and return to Area 11 for that other mission? This seems to be a better opportunity. I will return with Princess Euphemia whilst Princess Cornelia returns to her duties."

Jeremiah still had a duty of recruiting worthy people to work for his prince. As it stood, he was the only one who could protect his prince; he needed more muscles given that Lelouch had many enemies within the Empire. Area 11 had someone he could trust with his life.

"What are you saying Jeremiah?" Cornelia demanded. "A knight cannot leave the side of his prince. Lelouch is vulnerable… you cannot leave him alone." She turned her eyes towards Lelouch. "What is this other business you're talking about? Are you being, Schneizel, Lelouch?"

"It isn't anything you have to worry about, sister." Lelouch said with a smile, a charming smile just for effect. "Since when did Jeremiah become my Knight?" He asked with a raised brow.

"What? You will need a knight. If you're going to become active in your duties as a prince, you will need a Knight. I could select some trust worthy people for you if you think Jeremiah isn't enough." Cornelia offered.

Lelouch shook his head. "I will select my own Knight." He said. "You have nothing to worry about, sister. For the next couple of days, I will be travelling with Schneizel. I should be safe in his presence, don't you think?" Lelouch had the idea that if he didn't say something like that, Cornelia wouldn't permit Jeremiah to get into a plane with her.

Cornelia seemed to think for a couple of seconds before finally nodding. "That is acceptable." She said. "This will give me an opportunity to talk to Jeremiah about some things anyway."

That definitely sounded as 'interrogate' than talk.

 **Ashford Residence**

 **Area 11**

Milly was sitting on the edge of her head with a phone on her hand… she was thinking about calling Lelouch. She had taken his private numbers from her grandfather, but after talking with the old man, she didn't know how she was going to start a conversation with him. there were just a lot of thoughts occurring inside her head at the moment to focus.

"Get hold of yourself, Milly!" The blonde told herself.

Since when did she become a nervous person? She was always forward, never lacking in confidence. She could not allow those thoughts to get the best of her. Besides, she really did miss Lelouch. She missed teasing him, trying to break through his masks and learning more about the secrets that he obviously liked to keep to himself even from his beloved younger sister.

It was certainly not the same without him. Rivalz was down, and Shirley was heartbroken that her beloved Lulu was gone. Well, at least Rivalz was happy that he was a friend of the 11 Prince of the holy Britannian Empire. Princes were something like small gods, weren't they? Especially in a world where Britannia controlled most of the population and was a superpower that didn't seem to have any worthy opponent.

Sighing, Milly dialled the numbers.

"Hello…"

It was definitely his voice, a bit cautious, but it was Lelouch. Milly smiled. She had finally reached him. Her grandfather hadn't been willing to give her the numbers but she had used her means to get them from him when she realized that he was in contact with the prince.

"Lelouch, how are you?"

"Milly?" There was a pause over the line. "How did you get this number?"

"What? Is that how you speak to me, Lulu?" Milly asked, a bit dramatically. She understood. Lelouch was a bit paranoid, so he would be worried about how she got his numbers if he didn't give it to anyone but to Ruben. Of course, he would ask, even if it were her.

"No… I'm just surprised to hear from you, Milly. You must understand, only two people in the whole of Area 11 have this number."

Milly drew a thoughtful look on her face before responding. "That would be my grandfather and the second would be Sayoko… then I'm the Third…" She said with a smile. "You didn't answer my question. I heard that you were restored to your previous position."

"Yes… I'm back being a prince and currently residing in Aries Villa…" Lelouch said. "But I am well."

"Good." Milly said. "Isn't it a bit lonely, though? Want me to fly over to entertain you? I'm sure you may have been sitting in a dark corner while brooding about something." The Blonde said with a laugh.

"Don't you mean torment?" Lelouch asked.

"Hey… that is a clever way to get you to react since you're usually stiff…"

"You take it to the extreme Milly. I cannot remember how many times I have been left embarrassed because of your pranks."

Milly could mentally see Lelouch shake his head. "But you have to admit it was always good for laughter."

"For you maybe." Lelouch was quick to say.

Milly shrugged, but nothing came out of her mouth. She only allowed the awkward silence to last for a couple of seconds before asking. "So, how has the royal reception been like? Adjusting to being called, Your Highness again?"

Lelouch sighed audibly. "Don't remind me. But I haven't dealt with many royals. I've so far been locked up in Aries Villa."

"I know…" Milly said. "Nothing really comes out about you in the news."

"That is for the best." Lelouch said… there was silence before he spoke again. "Last time you were saying something about your grandfather trying to get you married to restore your family's fortunes…"

Milly almost skipped a heart bit at those words. She had spoken to her grandfather but she didn't know if he had spoken to Lelouch about it. The thing that made it troubling was that she could not see his face to tell what he was thinking.

"The Emperor also said he may marry me off to some princess…"

"Oh…" Milly was silent for a few moments. "Looks like we are in the same boat." She said.

"Not at all." Lelouch said. "I may have a chance to select who I get married to… If I don't pull off my weight, that man might end up marrying me to one of my half-sisters just to mess with me… anyway… Thanks for the call, Milly, but I must go."

"Am I allowed to visit?"

"You know you'll always be welcomed, Milly."

Milly smiled as Lelouch dropped the call. Well, things had gone smoothly. She had meant it as a joke when asking if she could go to Aries Villa… she really didn't expect Lelouch to say she was welcome. If she told Nunnally that she was going to see Lelouch, the girl would certainly show that jealous look on her face that she hides well, but not from her.

She had even forgotten to tease Lelouch about Shirley… Well, she had his number; she could always call him. He didn't set terms on how she uses the numbers… but even if he had, Milly wouldn't have followed them.

End of chapter

The Omnipresent Sage


	5. Chapter 5

**An update, finally. Well, let me not say anything – let us get into the chapter.**

 **Chapter Five**

Life was truly unfair; It was at times a treacherous survival race that only seemed to favor the few selected. This cursed world of false ideals and an oppressive ideology that has been fostered and preached by the Emperor was the cause of his sufferings. Had things been different, his mother would have still been alive and his sister would be able to see him and walk around. But she could not walk anymore. She was bound to a wheelchair and she was blind because someone had decided to open fire on his mother. Lelouch thought of that day with pure hatred. He would never forgive anyone and he would not rest until he knows what happened to his mother.

Because of that incident, his once happy and energetic sister couldn't see him. If she could walk, she would have been running around and maybe she would have visited already. But looking at her speak to him, eyes closed, her lips move up and down with a smile throughout, Lelouch felt hatred. He felt something building in his chest and it wasn't pleasant. He would strangle whoever did this to his sister with his own damn hands – even if that person was the emperor. One day, Lelouch would get his revenge. Justice would be served.

Lelouch smiled sadly, but his eyes had nothing but burning hatred as his sister was pushed away from the screen he had Sayoko install for him to be able to talk his sister while seeing her. It was doing nothing more than make him seethe in anger.

"Oh my," It was Milly's voice that came from the speakers just when Lelouch was about to cancel the line. The mask on his face disappeared and an expressionless one settled as Milly made her appearance known. "Big bad Lulu appears really angry." She said in an amused tone, but her eyes had a different look about them.

Lelouch stared at Milly for a long minute before laughing. "Big bad Lulu? Couldn't have picked something better?"

Milly cupped her chin for a moment before responding. "Well, you'll always be Lulu and regardless of angry you can be, you always look a bit harmless."

"Are you mocking my physical condition, Milly?"

The President of the Student Council grinned. "Well, you have always been physically weak, Lulu. You don't look really imposing unless one looks into your eyes."

"I have always had enough. You seem to forget that I was the one who used to carry Nunnally to bed."

Milly burst out in laughter for a couple of moments. "Nunnally doesn't weigh much. I also taker her to bed. Besides, you used to push her on her wheelchair and then put her to bed. She told me that even if it was usually for a minute, there would much groaning and grunts."

Lelouch stared; he was indeed physically weak. It was often humiliating how even Euphemia could easily tackle him to the ground. Cornelia wouldn't even need to put much strength into her muscles to even restrain him. His physical strength has always been his one weakness that has often been made fun of… He hadn't thought deeply about it because it hadn't mattered then. But now he was back in the slaughter house. If he could not run, he couldn't chase his enemies, they would easily catch up to him if he ever needed to escape for the safety of his life.

He was even going to military. He needed to at least have adequate strength to function for longer periods without losing stamina in a couple of minutes. He wasn't going to become good commander or even inspire confidence in his men.

The Eleventh prince sighed deeply and folded his hands before responding. "I'm not going to allow you to bait me into this…" he said.

Milly smiled innocently. "I'm not baiting, just being concerned. Didn't you say you'd have to marry? A princess will want her prince to carry her through the stairs to their bedroom."

Lelouch frowned thinking about the marriage thing. He ignored Milly's other words. And decided to change the subject. "I thought I told Sayako that this was to be kept a secret."

Milly put on a hurt look on her face. "I am wounded Lelouch," she said dramatically. "Here I am happy to see your face and you are questioning my presence. Don't you no longer care? Have you already found someone else?"

"Milly…" Lelouch said with a stare.

Milly just smiled. "You are not fun as you used to be," she said with a slight shake of her head. Her expression changed quickly. "Now, what was making you look so foul like you wanted to kill someone?"

Lelouch smiled – it was a cold smile. "I was indeed thinking of killing someone with my own hands," he said darkly.

Milly gave him a concerned look.

"There is nothing for you to worry about, Milly." Lelouch said on a slow tone.

Milly stared at him for a long moment before smiling. "So, when am I going to visit? I haven't seen Aries Villa in a long time… and I must show myself to deter any potential suitors for you."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Milly waved her right hand. "You'll figure it out soon enough…"

Lelouch shook his head. He wasn't even going to bother thinking about it. It was only going to be something troublesome. You never know what is inside of Milly's head. "It's not yet safe. Besides, I have to disappear for a while before I deploy."

"A pity," Milly said. "I had thought we'd have so much fun."

Lelouch snorted. "I'm sure it would have been only you having fun," he said. "But it wouldn't be so bad to have you around. The place can be quite silent at times."

"I'm sure you spend it all brooding," Milly said with a look. "When are you going to get busy? The Emperor certainly didn't call you back just so you can sit around brooding."

"It's not brooding!" Lelouch exclaimed. "I'm supposed to shadow Schneizel a bit to learn about politics. After which, I will be forced to head into war somewhere else…"

Milly smiled sadly. "But at least you still live, Lelouch. But knowing you, I am certain you have already plotted things for your rise. Very soon, we will be reading stories about Britannia's Black Prince."

"Black Prince?"

"Well, Prince Schneizel is already the white prince," Milly said. "You will be fine, right?"

Lelouch didn't mistake the concern in her eyes. He was going to war and people did die there. It did not matter if he was royal or not. Perhaps for him there would be much danger because people would try to sabotage him. "I will be…"

Milly grinned. "I can't have you dying on me before you fulfill your promise to me…" she said.

"What promise, Milly?" Lelouch asked with narrowed eyes.

Milly's smile only widened. "I will remind you in the best way some day," she said waving her right hand. Before Lelouch could say anything, she cut off the line.

The Eleventh prince sighed tiredly. He was certainly not going to have Milly come here when it would be just the two of them. She would make his life miserable.

 **Days Later**

Jeremiah couldn't help but smile as he saw the gates of Aries Villa. He had been gone for a number of days, away from his Lord, his prince – it had been a torture just thinking about how lonely and unguarded Lelouch must have been without him. Perhaps he was being a bit giddy, but ever since his reason to live with pride returned him, Jeremiah had never been happy like this. He also worried. For the safety of his prince. He did not wish for history to repeat itself.

The former Purist leader halted in his movements as he stared at the gates. Some years ago, tragedy had welcomed him upon his return. He had seen a bloody and gruesome scene. Lelouch was back. His Lord was back and he would not allow anything to happen to him again. He would not. Jeremiah Gottwald would die trying if his best was not enough. Nothing would happen to Lelouch as long as he was alive.

"Lord Jeremiah, are you okay?" Villetta asked, seeing the man's jaws clenched, and his posture a bit stiff.

Jeremiah slowly turned towards Villetta. She had been the only one to follow him here, but he would have liked for even Kewell to follow him. The man had not been convinced. He did not care about Lelouch. But Villetta had agreed after hearing him out, after hearing the kind of future that was ahead of them. What had been much attractive had been the idea that Lelouch had deep connections with Schneizel. Although Lelouch wouldn't gloat about his friendship with the Prime Minister, there was no denying it.

"Old memories," Jeremiah finally said in a bitter tone.

"Unpleasant memories," Villetta muttered. She did recall that this place did have a rather dark past and Jeremiah had been a part of it.

Jeremiah nodded before smiling. "Let us not keep Prince Lelouch waiting for us," he said before continuing to walk towards the gate.

Villetta wanted to remind the man that he had been the one who stopped but she said nothing – it was best not to burst his bubble. The gates were heavily guarded. Jeremiah had looked surprised to see the armed guards at the gate. He questioned things a bit before he went through.

"Why is this new?"

"In his immediate return, the palace was being guarded by people who reported straight to the emperor. However, once the cloud over his Highness' future was removed, the guards were also removed. Prince Lelouch must have organized this in my absence," he frowned at the thought.

"Why is this a bad thing?" Villetta asked, seeing the frown on Jeremiah lips.

"It would have made me much more comfortable if I had been here when he selected the guards," the man said in a calm tone, eyes glancing behind him at the guards.

Villetta shook her head. "It sounds like you don't trust your Prince's judgement…"

Jeremiah didn't miss how she referred to Lelouch. Villetta was still Britannia so, Lelouch was still her prince. Perhaps she meant it in the personal terms in serving him. She still wanted to see things on her own before fully committing on anything. The margrave turned his eyes towards the stairs leading towards the entrance of the palace and saw Lelouch sitting there. Those damned stairs that had witnessed the assassination of Empress Marianne. They seemed clean now, but Jeremiah would never forget. The images would always remind him of his failures and what would happen if he failed once more.

He increased his pace without responding to Villetta upon seeing Lelouch. The woman only shook her head seeing this.

 **With Lelouch**

Lelouch had a small book on his left hand – he had been doing some reading. It was fundamental that he know everything that he needed to know and possess some useless knowledge, for now. You never know when it might prove useful. In this world of vultures – this world of survival for the fittest, he could not make do without knowing anything. He could not survive without the needed knowledge and expertise. The imperials would eat him alive, he would face the same end that his mother faced, on these stairs, and like before, there would be nothing done and it would only be his younger sister who has to suffer.

These hawks would devour her. His innocent blind sister would become a tool for the Imperial family. Lelouch seethed at the thought of what might happen to her if something ever happened to him. He would make all plans to ensure he didn't die prematurely. But the emperor's call had made him aware that he didn't know what would happen tomorrow despite his best laid plans. If something does happen to him, there would have to be plans for Nunnally's survival, for her happiness.

He couldn't trust anyone to do anything in the Imperial Family. Perhaps Cornelia would make promises, but if she had to choose between Nunnally and Euphemia, there was no question what she would choose. He couldn't trust Schneizel with anything. His brother would certainly ensure that no one touched his sister and she was alive, but if a chance came for him to use her, he would do it without blinking. In this world, Lelouch had no one. It was just him against this world and he would conquer it.

Still, there was a lot that he needed to achieve. So many things that he needed to do. He had nothing. He was just a prince but with nothing. The nobles wouldn't give him an ear. Lelouch didn't need it though. He felt nothing but contempt for the aristocracy. They were nothing but power hungry savages. If he was the emperor, he would certainly abolish the nobility status. He smiled at the thought. There would be plenty of resistance on that rule, but if they resisted, they could be forced to accept, wasn't it? Britannia rules by power and those with power could do anything they wanted and get away with it.

Lelouch looked from the book he had stopped reading an hour ago and glanced down the stairs; Jeremiah was literally running towards him, leaving the woman he was with behind. He smiled at the scene whilst shaking his head. At least in Jeremiah, he had someone he could trust – someone he could depend on.

"My Lord," Jeremiah kneeled on the stairs and stared down for a moment before looking up to Lelouch. "I was most worried while I was away. I am truly happy to see that you are well."

Lelouch raised an eye brow and glanced at the woman he recognized as Villetta Nu from the files Jeremiah had given him. The Eleventh Prince didn't speak to her though, he glanced back Jeremiah and responded in an amused tone. "What did you think was going to happen in your absence, Jeremiah."

Jeremiah didn't need to think about the answer – he spoke almost immediately. "Your Highness, I know very well that a high number of the upper class would rather have you dead than breathing. The Vi Britannia line has never been liked by the nobility. I wouldn't put it past them to plot something."

"They are probably plotting something even now," Lelouch said those words very slowly to drive the message through. He was not ignorant of his predicament. The fact that he seemed to have the Prime Minister's favor wouldn't deter anyone from acting against him. It was a risky business, but nothing was ever risk free. "But what would you have done, Jeremiah?"

"If they had sent people to invade this palace, I would have shot everyone to death!"

Lelouch shook his head. he had no doubt that if given the weapon, Jeremiah would go that path and even if he did not have it, he would wrestle one from the enemy. Well, it terms of weaponry, it wasn't something that he needed to worry about. Lelouch had stocked on weapons. He was going to be in Military, he would need to get a better handle on weapons.

The Eleventh Prince turned towards Villetta Nu and then addressed her. "Villetta Nu, welcome to Aries Villa. Vi Britannia may not be well liked amongst the upper class, but we do have one of the best homes within the empire. I hope you'll enjoy your stay here."

Villetta managed a small smile; Lelouch was smiling, but those eyes that stared at her were scrutinizing her in a way that made her feel uncomfortable. He was indeed a member of the imperial family alright. It wasn't just his look but the atmosphere around him – it smelled royalty and superiority.

"Thank you, your Highness," Villetta said. "Lord Jeremiah did say the place also have quite some lovely gardens."

"Indeed," Lelouch said. there was silence that lasted for about a minute – it felt much longer than that though. "Is this it, Jeremiah?"

Jeremiah frowned slightly. he would have liked to have gained many friends upon his return, but there had been nothing. People were not really willing to risk anything, not with Lelouch. Blind bastards. They simply could not see the brilliance that was his prince. they would regret their choices and one day, Jeremiah would spit on them. "Yes," he responded in a low tone.

Lelouch still smiled though. "Good enough," he said.

"My Lord?" Jeremiah had expected Lelouch to be disappointed. He was both confused and surprised by that response.

"This is enough," Lelouch said but did not explain in detail. "Villetta, what do you think of Prince Lelouch vi Britannia…" when she hesitated to speak, he smiled. "Speak your mind, Villetta. I asked for your opinion, there won't be any consequences."

Villetta considered it for a moment. It was still dangerous. What if she said something he didn't like and then he orders his guards to shoot her? But Jeremiah had said Lelouch wasn't like that. Even so, those men at the gates had been heavily armed and for him to sit here like this meant that he was highly comfortable. "I think that His Highness is at a disadvantage compared to other princes and the fact that he isn't well liked by the aristocracy makes his position very difficult."

"Well liked?" Lelouch laughed. "Those cowards resent my very existence. I am nothing more than a stain to the upper class," he said in a stern tone. "If those are your thoughts, then why did you come here?"

"Lord Jeremiah convinced me to come and having worked under him for some time, I trust his judgement."

"What was his Judgement?"

"That His Highness will achieve many great things."

Lelouch glanced at Jeremiah who only grinned; the Eleventh Prince shared the grin. "We will indeed achieve many great things. But for now, we have many enemies that can rid of us. Britannia's entire aristocracy is the enemy, and wherever we stand, there will be people with guns pointing at us."

Villetta didn't think it was likely unless it was the emperor who was doing the deed himself. So far, it didn't look like there was anyone who could do anything to Lelouch because of what people think of how the emperor perceives him. She had also done her homework; Lelouch may not be the most liked or with anything one can note, but he had just returned to the fold, and he was close to the two imperials who demanded respect – Schneizel and Cornelia. With those two around him, there was no way Lelouch could turn out to be a failure. Besides, Jeremiah has said that he was truly a capable person.

She would need to see that but she knew that they would be going to war. If he was truly going to go into military, he wasn't just going to be a common soldier. Regardless of what many may think, the Emperor would not allow one of his children to be just a common solider. He would be given an army of his own to lead, and if she was going to follow him, she would be working under him.

Villetta frowned; perhaps there was truth in his words. She shook her head – there was truth. If he was going into battle, she would not be surprised to see sabotage attempts. The nobles could and would do that. It was nothing but a game they played. They would not allow the son of a mere commoner to become something great within the empire. They would not allow it and they would do it in a very subtle or perhaps bold way regardless of what the emperor was thinking. Given the man's attitude, one would even be inclined to think if someone shot Lelouch in the back, the man wouldn't even blink. She wasn't a noble, but she knew that the emperor wasn't known for his kindness.

"Tell me, Villetta, do you believe that I can achieve many great things. Are you willing to even risk anything for glory? In this life, you cannot achieve anything if you are not willing to risk things. Perhaps if you stayed with the Purists, you could achieve something or maybe not. But if you are going to follow me, you are going to follow my commands in battle without hesitation."

He didn't need people who thought they knew better and simply try to ignore his orders because they were older. Age and birth didn't determine intelligence and wisdom. You could be born of royal blood and still be stupid like the Crown Prince. Of course, the emperor would never admit that his first born was a useless man who allowed Schneizel to make all the decisions because he didn't have the spine and courage to make the hard decisions. He didn't even have the intelligence to move as Schneizel would.

"I came here prepared for anything," Villetta said in a firm tone. She still wasn't sure – she was walking blind. But she did trust Jeremiah. Even so, it was apparent that Lelouch wasn't going to explain or do anything to convince her to follow him. It was either she wanted to follow or not. This just smelled of Britannian arrogance, but she would not voice her thoughts.

"Good," Lelouch said. "Jeremiah, lead her in so that she came be comfortable. In a good day, I will arrange for knightmare frames to be brought so that I can see what you really are capable of…"

"Will you be piloting a knightmare frame as Well?" Jeremiah asked.

"Naturally, I know my way around a knightmare but I have not piloted one for battle," Lelouch said. "I have to get in some minutes before heading out. It would be a disappointment if I end up failing because of inexperience. And failure isn't really welcomed in the empire."

That was a pleasant way of saying things. Lelouch knew though. The Emperor would not tolerate failure from him. He has already been warned already. If he failed, there would be consequences. He could not afford to fail. He could not afford it. Nunnally would be used if he failed and he would be reduced to a tool for political hostage once more; this could be allowed to happen. Not to him. Not now. Not ever.

 **The Following Day**

Schneizel was already on-board his private plane. It was that much apparent from what Lelouch could see. But he was not that surprised. The Prime Minister was a busy man and there was no one who handled diplomatic issues better than him. If their eldest brother had been a little useful, the second prince would have someone to share his duties with. But he had to deal with their father and lead the empire in war against the EU. The Crown Prince was truly a useless pawn in the chessboard. His only use would be getting married off to someone in high places to ward of needless battles. Lelouch could see Schneizel making such a move in the near future.

The Eleventh prince leaned back to his comfortable chair and stared at the screen in front of him. "Going somewhere?"

Schneizel nodded and put on an apologetic look on his face. "I know I wanted to show you some of my projects but the war with the EU has taken a different turn. Without my presence there, the military generals have started to move on their own." It was hard to tell if he was angry because he did not display such emotion.

Lelouch had never seen Schneizel angry. The man was calm and ruthlessly cold in manipulating things. He must have known they would make a move but yet let it happen because he wanted to open another door for himself. This cold person was like that. The generals were nothing but pieces of chess that were only supposed to move under his instruction. Schneizel didn't need to grace the battlefield, he could sit on his throne like chair and issue his orders as he would when playing a game.

"Unsurprisingly, there is some assumption that Britannia isn't taking the EU seriously because we have superior knightmare frames than them and yet we have been on a deadlock…" Lelouch said calmly.

"You have been studying," Schneizel said with a small smile. Then what did he expect, Lelouch was truly his younger brother.

"I am going to war myself, it would be foolish to ignore the state of affairs," Lelouch said with indifference.

Schneizel nodded. "The assumption is perhaps true. The military heads have been pressing to push in invasion in the EU. But that will have consequences so I have been stalling while ensuring that the EU makes no progress."

"But of course every now and then they have to be shown that they can be annihilated," Lelouch said. The second prince has already done this before. His strategy was simply for the long term benefit rather than looking at the immediate future.

"Of course," Schneizel said with a nod. "I don't control the military but I have enough influence within the EU war to stall for things. In terms of economics, we cannot afford to have the EU collapse or it will affect Britannia badly."

"Is this why even though there is war the nations still continue to have undisturbed trade?"

Schneizel nodded. "I don't know when I will return and I won't be the one to place you in battlefield. The order will come from high command."

"What have you heard?"

"Nothing as yet, they are still discussing," he said.

Lelouch was silent for a couple of moments before asking. "Will you be able to stall for my deployment for about two to three months?"

"I can try," Schneizel said. "Why?"

"I need to make some preparations myself. If I am going to war, I am going to pilot a knightmare."

"I don't think there is a need for you to enter the battlefield yourself. You are quite capable of controlling the flow of things while watching from afar…"

Moving pieces around… Lelouch wondered if Schneizel felt like a god at times. Either way, that wasn't his style. "We do not think the same way, Schneizel. When the king moves, the pieces have to follow him. His movements must inspire those around him to move. If I am going to be successful, I need to have soldiers who are willing to follow me with their hearts."

"While I cannot agree with that thinking, not to mention the risks involved, I still think that you will become a successful military general."

"The difference in thought is simply because of our difference in values brother," Lelouch said calmly. He did not explain. Schneizel would not ask either. "If you can stall my deployment, I would be most grateful."

"We are brothers, Lelouch." Schneizel said calmly. "Besides, if you have better preparations, I won't have to focus on military actions but on politics. Had things been different, you would have been the one deploying to the EU while I handle internal issues with other areas…"

Lelouch smiled. "You could always leave our eldest brother in charge of your duties when you are otherwise occupied."

Schneizel shared Lelouch's smile. "Although father views those duties as mundane affairs, I'm certain even he would step away from his throne and handle them himself if such an opportunity presented itself…"

Lelouch laughed. That would never happen. From what he has learned, the Emperor has been detached from affairs of the empire, pushing them to his children. But he knew, it was simply humor. "That gives me motivation to give my best in my preparations."

"What kind of preparations are we talking about, Lelouch? His Majesty had said there would be no time for you to go to military academy."

"Wasn't that because I would need at least a year there to complete training?"

"There is that," Schneizel didn't need to explain the other reasons. Lelouch knew them. If there was someone else aside from him who understood their father's nature, it was Lelouch.

"Logistics, Knightmare frames… understanding what needs to be understood about Britannia's position in all nations. I want to be able to know what happens if Britannia invades a certain nation and I need to have tools of support. I don't have anything as things stand."

Schneizel understood that. He had many connections. There were many people who were loyal to him. So many who did things for him. You needed to have that to survive in this world. "I introduced you to some of my friends for this reason. Has someone contacted you?"

Lelouch was certain that Schneizel already had an answer to this. "Yes but it's not quite enough. I need more…" he said. Before the second prince could offer his response, Lelouch spoke once more. "I'll wait on your response, brother."

"You will have it within two days."

When the communication line ended, Schneizel adopted a thoughtful look on his face. His brother has certainly been busy over the past days. He hadn't thought of it as much when Lelouch suddenly started moving pieces. Truly, information was power. And Lelouch had lacked that. But he was moving around and gaining. It was nothing troublesome. Lelouch had to grow. He needed him to be able stand on his own.

But of course, he would not be allowed to stray too far away from him.

 **Later**

It was truly rare to find friends in this damned world. But Lelouch was at least grateful than he had people who liked him. Cornelia may not be a favorite to the nobles because of her military attitude but she was still the Witch of Britannia. There were very few who could act against her. Perhaps her flaw was that she didn't try to play politics. She seemed to hate it with everything she has and instead favors military force over talking. She wasn't stupid nevertheless. She hasn't been as successful as she has been because of luck.

This elder sister of his was someone he had grown around but she was still a suspect. Lelouch sometimes played around the idea of how she seemed to care for him and how she was involved in the guarding of his mother. She had to know something. Clovis had said so.

"Lulu?" Euphie poked Lelouch on his forehead seeing him seemingly lost in thought. She had a curious look on her face, staring at him intently.

Lelouch eyes snapped towards the Third Princess; she was dangerously close to him. Her innocent blinking eyes were staring back him. Lelouch could feel her warm breath, the intoxicating scent she produced. This was his half-sister. He loved her. Nunnally came first, but aside from his sister, no one came close to Euphie.

The Eleventh prince unconsciously lifted his right hand and cupped Euphie's chin. He tilted his head to the side as she stared into her eyes deeply. Euphemia cheeks reddened a bit before Lelouch put on an amused look on his face. This caused Euphie to hit him on his shoulder.

She folded her hands across her chest and glared at him.

Lelouch continued smiling before speaking. "The man who will marry you will be lucky to have you, Euphie…" he said.

Euphemia stared at Lelouch for a couple of moments before speaking. "He'd have to be… Cornelia isn't going to allow any boy to come closer to me."

Lelouch laughed. Cornelia could be like a smothering mother at times. "Even if he does get close, he will have gone through interrogation. Well, I would also do the same."

"Why?"

"You are my precious sister whom I love dearly," Lelouch said in a serious tone.

Euphie smiled warmly. She too loved him but she could not say it. Her smile widened as she thought of the younger days she'd enjoyed with Lelouch and Nunnally. "Why another man? Didn't I make a promise that we'd get married one day?"

Before Lelouch could respond, Cornelia stepped into the room and spoke. "You two are a bit older to be talking about such things," she said sternly.

"Lelouch and I can talk about whatever we want, sister," Euphie said; she almost felt like sticking her tongue out at her little show of defiance.

Cornelia glared at Euphie for a second. She shook her head and then turned towards Lelouch – who was wearing an amused look on his face. She sighed and then glanced at her younger sister. "Give me some time along with Lelouch, Euphie."

Euphie looked between her siblings for a moment before nodding her head. She smiled towards Lelouch and then walked away from the room without saying a word.

Once she was gone, Cornelia turned to Lelouch and walked over to him. She pulled him closer to a tight hug. She almost crushed him but she didn't seem to care that he was warning her about it. Cornelia just wanted to hold her dear brother. She didn't want to let him go. She hadn't known that things were truly difficult for him, but after going to Area 11, she had seen it.

After a few moments, Cornelia let go of Lelouch and the prince slumped down to a single sofa behind him. He glanced up at Cornelia who also decided to settle down but she had a sad look on her face.

"It must have been rough on you, Lelouch. When I heard that you were alive, I was simply happy but I did not consider the hardships that you had to face in a war torn area with Nunnally beside you," the second princess said through gritted teeth.

Lelouch knew there was anger but he couldn't tell what it was for and to whom it was directed. He did get the feeling that she was mad at the emperor for allowing things to happen in the way they did and for exiling him in the first place. It was even convenient that people seem to forget that he had been stripped of his status and then exiled to Japan to be used as a political hostage. The Japanese were to think that Britannia would never invade a nation where its leaders housed the children of the emperor.

Thinking about it, the life hadn't been easy; it had been difficult. But he had made it. He had survived and he would survive even this challenge. "It was indeed difficult, sister. But I made it."

Cornelia nodded but she didn't say anything for a couple of moments. "I can't believe that you were forced to raise Nunnally on your own Lelouch. In her state, the needs you had to cater for her…" Cornelia shook her head. "I spoke to her; she has everything she ever wanted and she looked healthy. You did well Lelouch."

"Wouldn't you have done the same for Euphie?" Perhaps in some ways, he and Cornelia were very much alike. Their big weaknesses were their younger siblings and the one big problem they had was that the emperor could use their love for their younger sisters to manipulate them.

"Of course," Cornelia's response came almost too quickly. "About the Ashfords… What are you planning to do about them?"

"They provided us a place to stay but I covered the expenses myself," Lelouch said with a shrug.

"I was told about that," Cornelia said with narrowed eyes. "I could understand why you did the things you were doing in Area 11 but I can't fathom why you are still gambling even in here. Have you become a degenerate gambler, Lelouch?"

"It isn't like that, Cornelia."

"You did that because you didn't have someone to guide you. But I am here now and I will make sure that you behave properly. You seem to have forgotten the proper etiquette and mannerism demanded of us royals. Before I leave tomorrow, I will tomorrow, I will send someone to take you through that process again."

Lelouch stared at Cornelia with a frown. She was dead serious and that bothered him. "There is no need for that, sister."

"That isn't for you to decide. I am your elder sister, I will make the decision," Cornelia said sternly. "Do you perhaps have a problem with me that you wouldn't want me to get closer to you?"

"Why would I have a problem, sister?" Lelouch asked in a dangerously low tone, eyes fixed on his sister.

"I'm not Schneizel but I should know that you still hold some resentment over what happened to your mother." Cornelia said. "Maybe you suspect us for being involved which is why you never did come to me for help when you were in a difficult situation. If you had come to me, I could have protected you, Lelouch. You didn't have to hide away from us."

"That worked well for my mother," Lelouch said unconsciously. "I have not forgotten about what happened and I never will forget. My sister is what she is because of what happened. I will never forget. You were in charge Cornelia; you should have answers."

Cornelia fell silent; a range of emotions washed through her face. "Do you suspect me, Lelouch?" She sounded hurt that he would suspect her.

"You are not that kind of person, Cornelia. If something happened to me, you'd probably be the first to go on a killing spree," Lelouch managed a small smile upon saying those words. "But I want to know what happened."

"I don't know…" Cornelia said in a bitter tone. "On that night, your mother ordered all the guards to leave. After it had happened, our father wouldn't allow me to investigate. He ordered me to stay out of it. Schneizel was ordered to remove the body and clean up everything but even he doesn't know much because our father blocked all attempts."

Lelouch received the news with shock and puzzlement. He did not say a word for a couple of minutes.

"You are not thinking of charging to father again, are you?" Cornelia asked, almost in panic.

Lelouch laughed – it was a bitter laugh. "I have learned my lessons. Thinking of it, I was naïve and arrogant to think that I would amount to anything."

"You still maintain that air of arrogance," Cornelia said. She was relieved that he wasn't going to do anything. Well, Cornelia would have even resorted to shooting him on his knees if it meant stopping him from going to make the same mistake as before.

 **With Villetta**

All things considered, Lelouch really did have some powerful allies. If there was someone who wanted to sabotage him in military, they would have to deal with Princess Cornelia. From what Villetta has seen and heard of the second princess, she was merciless. She had seen how she interacted with Lelouch and it was apparent that she cared deeply for him. She would certainly have his back if someone was trying anything. And then there was the second prince. The future didn't look too bad at all.

Villetta looked away from the cup of tea she held and turned towards Jeremiah who was sitting in front of a computer, wearing a focused look on his face. She settled down across her former boss and faced him. "His Highness shares a close bond with some of his siblings…"

Jeremiah looked up at Villetta for a moment before speaking. "Have you decided to stay?" He asked calmly without responding to the woman.

Villetta stared at the man before offering a response. "There isn't much for me to do. The Purist Faction isn't going to last long. Kewell is a capable soldier but he won't be able to keep things together. It is better to jump the ship than allowing yourself to be dragged down to the bottom of the sea with it."

Jeremiah smiled upon hearing those words. "But what is important isn't just that you don't want to fall from grace, Villetta. There will be times I won't be able to protect His Highness and because of the many duties I will do in the future, I may not be able to serve my duty to protect him. I asked you because I trust you and if you prove yourself to him, you will become his knight."

Villetta stared silently. That hadn't been something that Jeremiah brought up before. But for it to happen, she would have to be follower of prince Lelouch and swear loyalty to him. Villetta could do that. The prince didn't seem like a bad person.

"Do you really think so?"

"Of course," Jeremiah said with a smile. "But don't think deeply about it. For now you have to prove loyal. Because of what happened in the past, his Highness does not easily trust anyone."

Villetta nodded; she could understand that.

"You said that that his Highness is close to Princess Cornelia… that is indeed true. But aside from her and Princess Euphemia, and Prince Schneizel, there is no other one who is close to him. There others don't even hide their hostility towards him."

"Friends are few and the enemy surrounds us, huh?" Villetta said in thought.

Jeremiah nodded. "This is why it is important for you to prove yourself to him. I don't doubt you. You are not a traitor. But because the enemy is large, it is difficult to trust."

"Why doesn't he use his connections with Prince Schneizel and Princess Cornelia to create friends?"

"Nothing in this world is ever free, Villetta"

Villetta frowned. Jeremiah didn't need to explain anything. She got the message. But what did you expect? Britannia preached survival of the fittest. You didn't receive favors. It was always a trade. You put out something for you to get something. In a world of the royals, it was a merciless game. The stakes were higher. There was the throne to consider. The First Prince may be the Crown Prince but everyone knew that he would never ascend to the throne. Even with the royals, privilege before the Emperor had nothing to do with birth right but your achievements.

If you have achieved nothing but cling to your birth rights and past glories, you would certainly not amount to anything in the race to the throne.

 **Area 11**

Once you tasted the life of a noble, it was truly difficult to live normally as just another person. Ruben had discovered this since he was forced to flee Mainland and come here, disgraced with nothing. The friends that he had once had turned to him once empress Marianne was murdered. Because of his family's support for the empress, they were also ruined. But he had enjoyed too much the comforts of nobility. It was hard to stop thinking about it. He was just Ruben now, no longer Lord Ashford. A treacherous world it was. But he had been thinking about returning to the fold since he established himself here. He had tasted the forbidden fruit and despite how treacherous it was, Ruben still wanted to go back again and have another bite

Maybe this time it would be different. He would choose allies differently. When Lelouch and Nunnally appeared at his doorstep, he had been thrilled. He had considered returning them to the fold, even if Lelouch only wanted to forget about being a prince and live his life normally. But he had been cautious knowing that such a move could spell an end for him. He had ended up abandoning using Lelouch for another plan – a plan to get a taste of being noble once more. To return the family fortunes.

Ruben smiled when Milly walked into his office – he had called for her. His granddaughter had always been at the thick if things when the plans of returning the family to its former glory were drawn. There was the option of her mother remarrying to someone from a noble house, but the woman wanted to hear none of it. She had looked to her daughter when the plots were being drawn; when list of candidates were screened.

"Milly…" he greeted his granddaughter happily.

Milly stared at her grandfather for a long moment before returning the smile. "Grandfather, you seem happy," she said. "Has mother finally decided it would be best if she gets married herself?"

Ruben laughed for a moment. "She still insists that she is way past her age being a wife," he said.

Milly snorted. "When it is convenient," she said. Her mother was still a beautiful woman who treated herself well. She would certainly have suitors if she put herself in the market.

Ruben, "Yes," he said. "But it is highly unlikely she would even inherit anything if she is to get married. For you it was safe because you could produce an heir who would inherit the title of your husband…" he paused for a moment before asking. "We really did put undue pressure on you, didn't we?"

"You did but I got used to it…"

Ruben looked amused. "But you never had any intention of getting married," he said. "Lelouch never wanted to return to being a prince. But we wanted to return to the noble class despite how we were treated, what does that make us, Milly?"

Milly shook her head. "You know the answer, grandfather…" she said. "It doesn't explain why you looked happy…"

"Things look like they will eventually look up," Ruben said. "I am not so much obsessed with returning to the upper class once more. But with Lelouch's return to the Imperial family, things seem like they will work out. Princess Cornelia spoke to me when she had come to see Nunnally."

"I know," Milly said. "What did she say?"

"Just that the Imperial family was grateful to us for looking after Prince Lelouch," Ruben said with a small smile. "I also received a call from Lelouch."

"The suspense," Milly said to her grandfather who had paused instead of just telling her what he wanted to say.

"It's not like you don't do it," Ruben said with a shrug of his shoulders. "I had once thought that we could try to marry you off to Prince Lelouch. But with how he was exiled and his contempt for anything Britannia, I knew nothing was going to come up."

"Did Lelouch call you about that?" Milly was almost certain that person wouldn't do something like that unless she pushed him. He has also seemed to forget that he said he would now be able to do something about her situation.

Ruben shook his head. "No, it is just a thought…" he said. "Lelouch wants our technology. He doesn't want us to continue running it, he wants to buy it."

Milly folded her hands across her chest. Lelouch certainly had the money now with him being a prince and he has millions he managed to 'scam' out of nobles during his gambling days. "What does that have to do with me?"

Ruben didn't offer an immediate response; a couple of seconds went by before he finally responded. "What do you think to the idea of marrying Prince Lelouch, Milly? I didn't agree to selling our technology because I wanted to think about it. Maybe the money will be good but I am thinking about the family's future."

Milly frowned. "Instead of giving you money, you want to offer me to Lelouch?" She managed a glare. When her grandfather nodded, she spoke, "Unbelievable!" She then stormed out of the office.

Ruben was honestly shocked. He had given this some thought and actually thought that Milly wouldn't be against the idea. She knew Lelouch. They have been friends since childhood. He'd thought she'd at least agree to the idea.

After banging the door to her grandfather's office, Milly leaned against it and put on a smile on her lips.

She could not have accepted her grandfather's offer. Not when she knew the type of person, Lelouch was. If she was going to end up with him, Milly did not want it to be part of a business transaction. She didn't want to be thrown towards him and she did not want pity. Not from Lelouch. If she was going to end up with him, it would have to be because of love. She knew though, Lelouch hardly filled his mind with such thoughts. But she would make him think about it.

She had a couple of tricks on her sleeve. Her grandfather could continue thinking she hated the idea. It wasn't like he was going to do anything without talking to her after all.

She would not tell Lelouch about it nevertheless.

 **Aries Villa**

Schneizel truly knew how to get things done but at this stage, he was going to end up owing the second prince a lot of favors. It couldn't be helped nevertheless. There was nothing that he could do on his own in this world. He did need that pick up. Schneizel had provided it and Lelouch was going to run away with it. He would not just sit back and wait for Schneizel to come up to him to push him around. Besides, if he didn't prove useful soon, the emperor would step in and push him around. It would not be pleasant. Lelouch would avoid this at all costs.

He had plans to build himself support base. He needed to have a corner that would sing him praises. Lelouch didn't need the praises. He would not grin madly and arrogantly stand tall when receiving it but he understood that without friends, he would nor survive the Imperial family. Even if he lived, he would only become Schneizel's tool. If he allowed himself to be dragged down like that, he would not achieve anything. He would not achieve his revenge and he would not get his wish – his sister's wish.

Lelouch looked up from the chess board in front of him and faced both Jeremiah and Villetta. "I had requested Schneizel to ask Military Command to delay my deployment so that I can make some final preparations before heading out and he has succeeded in this…"

"What preparations are those my Lord?" Jeremiah asked.

Lelouch looked back on his chess board for a moment before responding. "Preparations, Jeremiah. These preparations will force me to disappear for a while. And you will not with me."

Jeremiah frowned deeply. He did not like the sound of those words. "Where exactly are you going, Your Highness?"

"I'll be within Britannia. But admittedly, enemy territory would be much more safe for me than within home nation. I will nevertheless follow this path. I will keep contact with you in my absence and you'll have to watch this place," Lelouch said. "The guards you see out there were placed by Schneizel. I keep them at the gates for now, but during my time away, I want you to replace them one by one."

Villetta thought of this curiously. She wouldn't dare think that Lelouch suspected that his brother would hire people who would do something to him in Schneizel's orders.

"Are they not to be trusted?"

"They can protect this place and ensure of my safety to the best of their ability," Lelouch said. Schneizel wouldn't have brought them if they couldn't do their jobs.

"Then why remove them?" Villetta asked curiously.

"Because," Lelouch said knocking a pawn down on the chess board, "they also function as eyes and ears to my brother. They report to him whoever comes here. I'm certain he already has people checking your background," he said directly to Villetta.

Villetta was glad that she didn't have any nasty past. Otherwise, the Second Prince would uncover it and he would certainly be against her becoming close to Prince Lelouch. That would crush her dreams. And she certainly couldn't go back to the Purist Faction.

"While Jeremiah is busy on this side, I want you to head to Area 11. You'll go to Ashford Academy and speak to Ruben. You'll also try to understand the kind of developments Earl Lloyd is doing for my brother. I heard that he is building a Knightmare for my brother. But it does appear that my brother isn't convinced about the Earl's work. Try to see if we can offer the budget for the development of advanced knightmares. I want to be in possession of something special when I grace the battlefield."

"Do you think we can get personalized Knightmares?" Jeremiah said with excitement.

"That is what I am trying to sort out," Lelouch said. "When I come back, I will come to fetch you and then we will head to war."

"Where do you think we will be deployed?"

"North Africa or Europe…" Lelouch said. "I am not concerned about this. Wherever we are deployed, we must have the necessary tools to win."

Winning was all that mattered in this world. If Lelouch couldn't win, he wouldn't amount to anything. The emperor would grab him by his throat and put a leash on his neck before making him the guard at the Imperial Hall. It would be at most humiliating. He would not be able to do anything. He would not be able to get his wish. Lelouch could not afford to lose. Loss was death to him – it was the end. He had to be a winner to survive. And Lelouch would become a winner. He would defeat his enemies, he would defeat Britannia.

But defeating Britannia was a long term goal. For now, he had nothing. He didn't have an army. If he tried anything, he would be destroyed and Nunnally would be uprooted from Area 11 and turned into a slave for some noble. He needed to grow. Strong enough to be called a rival of Schneizel. That man who called him 'son' when it was convenient had made him return to the fold because he wanted a match for Schneizel. He could not have one of his children basking in all the glory. There was no competition and he wanted it.

Lelouch would play the game. Not because Charles wants him to play but because it was the only way he could rise to one day face the Emperor.

The Eleventh Prince turned to Villetta once more. "While in Area 11, you can keep yourself busy and occupied by getting in a knightmare. The area has a terrorist problem. I will speak to Clovis to admit you his army to be able to battle." He said. "I have arranged for your plane to leave tonight. You should prepare."

Although caught off-guard by the hasty departure, Villetta merely saluted and departed from Lelouch's side to go prepare.

Lelouch was quite sure that Villetta had enough battle experience from what he has read. But the main reason for sending her there was simply to be able to know how Clovis handles his problems and the military activities within the area. Nunnally was there and he did not want his idiot brother doing anything to elevate the problems there and put his beloved sister at risk. That aside, he could not go to Area 11 now as things stand. The Emperor had forbidden the travel but perhaps when he returns from his trip, things would be alright.

"My Lord, I am still not sure it is safe for you to leave alone. It could be dangerous and I will not forgive myself if something does happen to you," Jeremiah said in a firm tone.

Lelouch had expected objections from the man. But he would not have any of it. "I have made a decision, Jeremiah, and you will follow it. I have not made a mistake and I have considered all possibilities. You will stay here."

"But your Highness…"

"No buts, Jeremiah," Lelouch said sharply.

"At least tell me where you are going…" Jeremiah said after a couple of moments of silence.

"Some place safe…" Lelouch said. "I have spoken to Cornelia about it and she will provide me with the necessities needed for my training and preparations. She was at most happy to give a helping hand."

Lelouch managed a small smile. At least with Cornelia, there were no strings attached. She did what she did because she cared. Of course, there were limits but at least with her, he didn't have to be cautious. He only had to worry about her trying to play the mother role as she does with Euphie.

"When do you depart?"

"Tomorrow morning…" Lelouch said.

 **End of chapter**

 **There have been moments I thought that I would never be able to continue with this story, but I have been working on things over the past months. I'm currently working on chapter 8. By that, I mean I have drafts for chapter 6 and 7. I should upload chapter 6 next Wednesday.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage**


	6. Chapter 6

Lelouch departed from a private plane wearing his nothing but casual black clothes. He had a confident smile as he stepped out of the plane, with nothing but a small bag on his bag. He looked like a man who was coming from a camping trip. Well, he could as well say that he had been camping. The he had spent much time away from other people with nothing but machines before him – the tools he would need for his grand entrance into the military stage and for his victory. He wasn't just going to get into military to make another royalty heading a group of men to their deaths, he was going to win.

For Nunnally's sake, he had to win. He had to become something. His name had to resound as Schneizel's. And Lelouch would get to that point. It would take some time to achieve but he would get it. Still, things had taken a dramatic turn. Some time ago after Britannia had invaded Japan, he had proclaimed to Suzaku that he would destroy it. But now he was forced to slave for it. To take part in its conquest to rule all nations in this planet. Some ironic plot twist. It was like the emperor had been watching him make the claim.

Lelouch shook his head and walked towards the limousine that was waiting for him. Jeremiah was standing by it, hands folded across his chest, eyes darting around the place. When their eyes met, the former Purist Faction leader rushed towards him with a large smile on his lips.

"My Lord," there was just pure happiness and relief in Jeremiah's tone. "I am glad that you have returned in one piece," he said happily.

Lelouch stared at Jeremiah for a moment before shaking his head. He truly had a loyal comrade with the man. But he was truly overzealous. Well, there was nothing wrong with that.

"I believe I did tell you that I would return," Lelouch said handing his bag to Jeremiah, who graciously took it with both hands. "You should have some faith in me, Jeremiah."

"I do trust you my Lord, but I worry," Jeremiah admitted. They had too many enemies and what he has learned was that their only true friend was Princess Cornelia. Prince Schneizel was a friend, but there were issues with him regarding his attempt to manage the life of his Lord.

Lelouch did not respond until he entered the limousine and settled gracefully. This was something new. He didn't have something like this before he left. "Where is this coming from?" He asked.

"A gift," Jeremiah said in quiet tone. "A friend of Prince Schneizel sent it over and said that you would need it to move around."

Lelouch smiled. The vultures were starting to make a move towards him. This was something he had expected to happen after he started his military campaign. He was nothing now, but the nobles were not blind to what was happening around him. It might not be him that they want. Some would give him favours not for his sake but for the sake of getting Schneizel to owe them one. His close relationship with the Second Prince wasn't a secret and many would play around to earn themselves good fortunate. Lelouch had no desire to be friends with these people but he knew the benefits of association. If he was going to grow powerful, he would need some allies. Perhaps, Schneizel parading him to his friends hadn't been such a bad idea after all.

"Did you check it for bugs?" Lelouch suddenly asked. Perhaps it was paranoia but you could never be too sure with gifts you receive from nobles. They were the type to serve you poisoned drinks with a warm happy smile while singing you praises.

"Of course," Jeremiah said with a nod.

Lelouch nodded. "Then we must thank our friend for the gift," he said calmly. "Did I miss anything?"

Jeremiah considered his words for a moment. "There was just a rumour about your sudden disappearance from Aries Villa. But aside from that, nothing much happened. Princess Cornelia did call when she received the news regarding your disappearance."

Jeremiah didn't have a fond memory regarding that day. The woman had screamed and shouted at him. Had she been closer, she would have bit him and order her loyal Knight to round him up. While she knew that Lelouch was going away and had helped with preparations, she hadn't known that he would go alone. According to her, Lelouch had said would take him when he goes away for his protection. Cornelia had reminded him of what happened the last time they had been ordered to stay away and swore that if something happened to her younger brother, she would hang him by her own hands. That day, he had known that the Princess truly does care for his Lord.

"Judging from your look, she wasn't happy," Lelouch said with an amused look on his face. He certainly knew how scary Cornelia could be when she was mad. He was amused just thinking of how Jeremiah must have looked when she was shouting.

"That is an understatement," Jeremiah said absentmindedly. "She was pissed. But as you have returned, I have escaped her wrath."

"We will handle things differently next time around," Lelouch said calmly. "No one did suggest that something had been done to me, right? I have not been appearing in public."

"But they still know you are here and you move around," Jeremiah said with a frown. "The Imperial Family refused to comment on any rumours and Prince Schneizel only smiled when asked. The Crown Prince did come here to ask. He seemed truly worried and as you hadn't said anything, I ended up telling him that you had just gone to prepare for deployment."

Lelouch snorted thinking of his eldest brother, the mediocre prince. Odysseus was an anomaly that made Lelouch wonder why he still continued to live despite his inferiority. The man was timid and had no ambition. Well, he had no malice in him. But Lelouch honestly didn't care if the man lived or died. He was nothing but a nuisance, just another child of the emperor. The only difference was that he was the first in line to inherit the throne. But that would never happen.

"There is no harm there but I assume this was started by someone within the upper class. My presence has been scarce in public spaces," Lelouch said in a calm tone. "Have you heard anything from Villetta?"

Jeremiah smiled. "She sent some good news. It does appear that your sources were right; Prince Schneizel hasn't given Earl Lloyd all the resources he requires. She says the Earl is trying to develop a Seventh Generation Knightmare frame called the Lancelot. There have been some budget issues that have stalled the project. According to Villetta, the Earl shows no loyalty towards Prince Schneizel and would develop the Knightmare frame for you if you provided the funds."

Lelouch wasn't going to take away the project. He wanted the man to build something for him. He could not afford to be looked at with suspicion by Schneizel. He would have to talk to the man about it but it mattered not because his ace would be with the Ashfords. But of course, if things could be hidden, he wouldn't mind gaining the assistance of the man. For now, he needed something he could use when he goes into battle.

"We will arrange that and perhaps he will be useful in the future," Lelouch said with a smile. At least on that area, things looked like they would proceed without trouble. "And Schneizel?"

"He did not try to contact Aries Villa in your absence," Jeremiah said with a slight shake of his head.

Lelouch merely nodded and turned his gaze to the outside as the limousine made its way towards Aries Villa. He really needed to get his private plane. Perhaps one with Military capabilities would do. But for now, he didn't have the necessary funds because of the many projects he has lined up. Well, things would look up once he begins his military campaign. For now, he would just have to contend with this.

 **Later that day**

Britannia's war with the European Union was something curious. Before, Lelouch had looked at it differently but with how things were, it was truly safe to say that the Empire really didn't feel threatened by the EU. They were indeed a powerful union could do some damage but not enough to threaten Britannia's rule. Perhaps it was Schneizel's long term plans that made things move so slowly but the empire did have ambitions to take over Africa from The EU. The EU did have more people and member states under it than the Holy Britannian Empire, yet this empire had the most advanced technology and superior military strength. The EU wasn't just sitting around nevertheless. It was developing but Schneizel was also gaining by turning member states to his side, thus weakening the union.

Aside from the EU, there was the Chinese Federation. The latter had the most population and soldiers to deploy into war. If the EU joined with the Federation, they would become something dangerous. Britannia would certainly be threatened but that didn't seem like something that would happen. If Lelouch was fighting against Britannia and he was a commander of the EU forces, he would try to gain control over the Chinese Federation or at least form a partnership with them to help form military strength that could match Britannia. Despite fighting many wars in different sides, Britannia's military strength wasn't slowing down. It kept increasing and the Sakuradite in Japan made things easy for them to keep producing Knightmares. Of course, Britannia had other sources but they were fairly hidden.

The Empire was big. Lelouch would admit. Toppling something this big would certainly be a major showdown that would require major forces to join in. But from within, he could still do it. His first thought hadn't been like this, but he was forced to change things because of that damned bastard. Lelouch thought of his father with pure anger.

The Prince looked up when the large screen in front of him started blinking. A royal call. It could only be Schneizel. He didn't expect to hear from Cornelia any time soon. She probably didn't even know he had returned. Lelouch accepted the connection and the smiling face of the Prime Minister appeared.

"Brother, it is good to see you…" Schneizel said with a small smile. "We once thought you were dead but now that you are alive, I do worry when you disappear."

"It was arranged," Lelouch responded in a flat tone.

"Yes," Schneizel said. "But you neglected to tell me where exactly you were going. It doesn't help when the military command asks me about your whereabouts and I can't tell them even though I was the one who requested that you be given some time away before deployment."

Lelouch wasn't concerned by this. Schneizel was no amateur. Surely, something like that wouldn't worry him. "I'm sure you thought of something," he grunted.

"I did but at least do tell me what you are going to do and where. It makes things on my part," Schneizel said. He was silent for a couple of moments before speaking once more. "Lelouch, was there any reason you felt I didn't need to know?"

"Nothing in particular, I just wanted to be away without anyone knowing. I didn't even tell Cornelia of my exact location despite requesting her help with certain arrangements," Lelouch said with a small shrug of his shoulders.

Schneizel nodded. He didn't dwell on the matter for too long. "You have some slight change in your physical appearance. Many people wouldn't be able to tell, but I can tell. I guess you really are going to follow the same path as Cornelia."

Lelouch wasn't going to get into this again with Schneizel. They had already discussed it and he would not be discussing it with the man again. "We have already had this discussion, Schneizel."

The Second Prince merely smiled before switching the subject. "Since you have now returned, I guess we should start our serious talk. But before we get to that, I want to enquire about how father found you. It is my suspicion that he knew you were alive for some time but did nothing."

Lelouch stared at the man for a moment. Last time around, he had managed to steer the conversation away and refused to answer certain questions. But Schneizel wasn't going to be satisfied unless he receives his answers. He sighed deeply and narrowed his eyes before responding. "I'm sure you already know that I intentionally stayed away and played dead."

"Well, you didn't return with mental scars and your return was forced," Schneizel said with a small smile on his lips. There was also something that Clovis had said that made him curious but he would not get into it unless Lelouch brought up the matter. "Father really didn't give an explanation about it and cut off any attempts on my part to probe."

"I don't know what you want to know, Schneizel. You already know I was really just living a normal life in Area 11, away from the Imperial Family. It was fine that way. Well, it only lasted until our dear father decided that I had played around enough and that I needed to return to work like others," Lelouch said in a tired tone. "But what are you really after?"

Schneizel smiled. He could not let Lelouch in on this. But not for a moment did he believe that their father had really gone to Area 11 just to fetch Lelouch. No, there was another reason his father had gone that side and Lelouch was just another excuse. The Emperor has a tendency to disappear without even saying anything. His disinterest in the matters arising within the empire really did bother him. There was something else that occupied their father's mind. Schneizel would eventually find out.

"There is something that is curious but because I don't know the full details I cannot share. It is just speculation. However, I really do need to ensure that we are on the same page, Lelouch. You might think I see you as someone I can control, but I don't see you on that level. You are different from our other siblings. To be honest, there is no one I respect more than you."

Lelouch didn't have trouble believing the last part but he did wonder about the other parts. Schneizel would still want to have many inputs to ensure that he moves in a certain way. Lelouch would not allow his brother to dictate things for him. Not even Cornelia. Charles was enough. He didn't need to play the role of his brother's henchmen and stay within his shadow. "Then what do you propose, Schneizel?"

"A partnership," Schneizel said. "Politically, I have my way and because of Odysseus' respect of my input, he generally allows me to do most things he would ordinarily do as the Crown Prince."

Lelouch laughed. Odysseus' respect? That was a lovely way of putting it. The man just could not make the hard decisions. "I hear that because of father's often disappearances, you basically run the Empire."

"Oh?" Schneizel raised an eye grow. "You know about that."

"I'm not stupid, Schneizel," Lelouch said in a flat tone.

The Second Prince merely nodded with a smile. "It isn't by design. There are times we need a decision to be taken by the Emperor but he won't be anywhere we can find him. The decision then calls on us to take," he said. "Due to my many roles, I have my way politically. But the Empire still lacks a competent military general."

Lelouch smiled. "I'm certain Cornelia will not be happy to hear that brother," he said.

"Well, this conversation is private," Schneizel said with a smile. "Despite her many achievements our dear sister lacks finesse. She uses force in every situation. That does make her dangerous but still not quite effective if she were you."

"The things that Cornelia can do, I cannot," Lelouch said. "I thought you wanted me to work with you in politics."

"That was my plan. I wouldn't have minded making you my deputy and assign some responsibilities to you. But father had other ideas. So I was forced into this situation."

Lelouch was silent for a couple of moments. "You want me to rise high enough to sit at the very top of Britannia's military. If that happens, both of us would control every part of the Empire. You have the nobles in your pockets and if Military follows me, it's a check situation," Lelouch said with narrowed eyes.

Schneizel would not say it but now Lelouch knew that his brother had ambitions. He wasn't going to even admit anything but would play along. Still, the situation was a bit laughable though. Who would have thought that the unspoken message would be like this?

"You can do it, right?"

"Of course," Lelouch said. "Then I will need to be deployed as soon as possible. I think my preparations are enough and while I am sitting here, my stock isn't rising."

"I will try to get in the word for you." Schneizel said.

"I need you to speak to father about his decision to stop me from going to Area 11. I have some interests there that I cannot ignore. Before I'm deployed, I would like to visit the area," Lelouch said. He wondered if his father would permit it. He couldn't ask himself. Schneizel was the one who frequently visited their father's presence.

"Interests?" Schneizel smiled but didn't ask anything further about it. "I'm sure father won't disagree to anything. I also have reasons you should go to the area. But we will discuss it once I have spoken to him."

Lelouch nodded. "Then I will wait on you, Schneizel…" he said before disconnecting video call.

He released a long breath and leaned back to his seat with his eyes closed. Schneizel had made his silent move. Nothing was uttered but the intentions were clear. Lelouch wondered how long his partnership with his brother would last. For now though, he would keep it. He would play safe. It was fine being around Schneizel, for now at least. At the very least, his brother was right to say he did see him as a partner but they would eventually clash. They both were not after the same end goal. For now, their paths coincided and Lelouch would ride this wave with caution.

They hadn't played a game of chess, Lelouch realized. They would play next time. In a couple of days Schneizel would call and they would play. Their last game had ended up in a draw. He had yet to win, but at least he had arrested the losing streak. Well, Schneizel was a person with a superior mind – Lelouch would give him that.

A knock on the door caused his eyes to open. "Come in," he said.

The house keeper stepped into the private room slowly before standing by the door. "Your Highness, dinner is ready."

Lelouch raised an eye brow. He didn't know dinner was being prepared. He usually cooked his own food. He was used to it anyway. And he didn't usually have dinner. And this person would not prepare anything unless told.

The Eleventh Prince didn't want to frighten the woman by demanding to know who ordered her to make the dinner. He just nodded and told her he would follow her shortly. She nodded her head and slowly walked away.

Lelouch stared into the ceiling for a minute before finally standing up. He stretched himself for a bit before walking towards the door. He had been sitting there for hours working on the expenses he had. It worked wonders when you had an estate and an heir to a family business but Lelouch had none of that. He was a prince yes, but his mother had been a commoner – a mere Knight of Round before Charles caught her in his web and made her his consort.

When Lelouch arrived at the dining room, he found Euphie sitting there with a large a smile on her lips. He shook his head. He should have known. For some reason, he was glad it wasn't Milly. She would have made things difficult for him.

He smiled warmly towards his younger sister. The smile almost vanished when he thought of Nunnally. He had missed dining with her, feeding her. His beloved little sister. She was probably already in bed now. He needed to go back to Area 11 and see her. He hoped that Schneizel would manage something with the Emperor.

"Welcome back, Lelouch!" Princess Euphemia said with a happy smile on her lips.

Lelouch settled gracefully and looked at the food around the table before looking at Euphie. "I was sure that my return was a secret…"

"Well, I have my ways of finding out," Euphie said.

"You likely pestered Jeremiah about it until he told you," Lelouch said. It wouldn't be surprise. The man wouldn't have felt the need to keep it from her knowing how close they were.

"I'm not going to confirm that," Euphie said mysteriously. "I just thought we could sit and just enjoy dinner together. It would be better if Nunnally and Cornelia were here but they are both far away…" she said with a hint of sadness.

Cornelia was always at war. But of course she did make time to come back for her younger sister. Perhaps he could make a competition with her on who loved their younger sibling better. "One day, we will have that moment, Euphie."

Her smile brightened at that.

Lelouch was most grateful that although Euphie was naïve, she knew what Britannia was capable of doing. She knew of his contempt for their father. She knew and understood that their other siblings did not like them. She would never bring them up in hoping they could get along.

"I was speaking to Marrybel, she sent her love," Euphie said.

Another sister of his who didn't resent him. Perhaps with Mary things were better because she had a similar experience as him. She had no one. He still had his sister but they both resented their father with everything. "I see," Lelouch said. "I'm really not famous with our other siblings, am I?" He managed a smile despite those words.

It didn't please Euphie that they couldn't all get along but she had given up on the thought. Some of her siblings had expressed disappointment over the fact that Lelouch was alive. She knew that his closeness to Schneizel was also attracting some envy. They said he was just the son of a commoner, why did Schneizel have to like him? Why did have to receive some sort of special treatment? They were jealous and they would do something. Her sister had said she would keep an eye on things.

"Unfortunately no," Euphemia said with a frown on her lips. She then put on a look on her face as she studied Lelouch. "Neh, Lelouch, I know things are not great between you and father and that you hate the imperial family but are you really going to fight for Britannia?"

It was a complex issue but yes, he was going to fight for the very empire he had sworn he would destroy. "I don't hate you, Euphie…" Lelouch stressed those words.

"I know," Euphemia said with a small smile. "But you don't like the others."

Lelouch shrugged with indifference. "They don't like me either," he said. There was no need to like them. They shared the same father but with the Imperial family, it didn't mean anything. "I am going to fight. I don't really have a choice either way."

"Father is really forcing you to fight," Euphemia said before pausing for a moment. "Cornelia does it because she wants to and she does love Britannia. But you don't love Britannia. Will you be okay, Lelouch? I stay away from it but I know what happens when in war."

Lelouch frowned. He would be prepared for this. He would be fine. "As long as you, Nunnally and Cornelia are happy, I will be fine Euphie. You don't need to worry about me," He smiled, putting on an amused look on his face. "You should worry about Cornelia though…"

Euphemia shared his amusement. "I worry about her opponents."

"I have heard that she is merciless," Lelouch said with a shake of his head. Well, they did not call her the witch of Britannia for nothing. She was the goddess of victory. "What do you plan on doing?"

"I don't know…" Euphemia said with a shake of her head. "Cornelia won't let me do anything. She would rather I stay indoors."

Lelouch laughed. "Well, you'll always be her little sister…"

A Week Later

 **Imperial Court**

It wasn't often that the emperor sat at the throne when there wasn't anything happening. Then again, he rarely made public appearances unless there was something that was happening. Perhaps for the Emperor it was always a matter of convenience. But of course he never missed the opportunity to make one of his speeches. It was such speeches that continue this culture of war and Britannia's path of global dominance. He was the Emperor but Schneizel felt that sometimes his father really didn't care about what was happening out there. He never asked too many questions and sometimes told him he was bothering him with mundane affairs when talking about a war. The man was truly disconnected from reality.

Schneizel had only returned from the EU but he would leave soon enough for a meeting with the commanders of the union. For now, he had internal matters to handle.

The second prince kneeled before the Emperor of Britannia.

"Your Majesty…"

There was no response – it was just silence. This forced Schneizel to look up to the emperor. Those cold eyes were staring down at him with indifference. He was being told to say his mind. Those eyes… sometimes he had seen them within Lelouch when he was younger. Odysseus had their father's younger appearance but Lelouch had his eyes. Perhaps he and Lelouch had inherited their father's brilliance. Oh, the man was genius. He hasn't been emperor of this nation by being stupid.

"I have managed to tone down things with the EU but there doesn't seem to be any way to avoid war. They continue their military expansion and refuse to surrender," this has been despite his best efforts to get them to listen. But they did not want to surrender.

"Then I trust you will take necessary measures to make them submit," the emperor stated in a calm tone.

"Of course…" Schneizel said with a nod. He had been making plans and would soon move. Yes, within a week or so, he will be moving. "Within a week, we will move to Northern Africa. But of course only if you approve."

"Do it," the emperor responded without asking questions. "Is that all?"

Schneizel shook his head. "I was hoping that you could give Lelouch the permission to leave and go to Area Eleven. He is going to be deployed soon. And once that happens, he might not have the chance to visit the area."

"Why must I allow it? What good would it do?"

"Motivation," Schneizel said. "I also want to send him out for a task that I want him to do for me."

"Whose idea was this?"

"Lelouch."

"I will not hear any more requests coming from you from Lelouch, Schneizel. I will grant this but the next time Lelouch wants something, he must come to me."

"I understand, your Majesty," Schneizel said his farewell before standing up to leave the hall. The emperor just watched him leave. Once he was out, he sighed deeply and then continued to walk towards his limousine.

He did wonder how things were going to turn out when he does tell Lelouch that their father would not be taking any more messages. Without doubt, his younger brother detested their father with every ounce of his being. It was perhaps due to what happened in the past and the Emperor's views. Schneizel hoped that Lelouch did not allow those emotions to get the better of him as they did in the past. It would be a problem if something like that happened. It would also be the end of him. Well, he was around, he would ensure that nothing of the past happened again. Lelouch had grown but he still maintained some of his naivety and Schneizel wanted to fix that. He would iron it out.

The Second Prince gracefully entered his limousine and settled peacefully before turning towards his loyal assistant, Kanon. "Is my brother home?"

Kanon wondered about how things have changed. The others were referred by their names when they were not around. Clovis occasionally was an exception to the rule but ever since Lelouch returned to the world of the Imperial Family's politics, he has become the only brother Schneizel had. By now he knew, whenever the Second Prince said 'Brother,' he meant the Eleventh Prince.

"He is, he hardly leaves unless he is going out for his other extracurricular activities," Kanon said calmly.

Schneizel merely smiled. "I don't mind it," he said. He didn't mind and would not as long as Lelouch played it smart. Besides, he has never accused his brother of being stupid. He was prone to emotional outbursts, but he was not an idiot. "Let us go to Aries Villa." He said to the driver.

The rest of the journey was in silence. When they did arrive, Schneizel was reminded that his brother had removed all his guards. He hadn't questioned it. He had placed them there to keep an eye on Lelouch and monitor the situation. He would not ask Lelouch about it. As long as the replacements were capable, he would not complain. Besides, if he wants to tap into them, he could always do it. He wasn't a man who lacked the ability to convince people to work for him.

The second prince took out his briefcase and got out of the car. Jeremiah was there to greet him. The man quickly led him towards Lelouch's private room. Schneizel smiled seeing that the room was perfectly made for private conversations. He hadn't taken Kanon with him into the room. He settled gracefully and greeted Lelouch.

"You are here far faster than I anticipated," Lelouch said. The wheels of the empire moved slowly unless it had something to do with war.

Schneizel smiled. "I did say I also wanted you to go to Area 11," the Second Prince said calmly as he prepared the chessboard. He started putting together the pieces along with Lelouch. "You seem to have a dutiful guard next to you."

"Well, Jeremiah is a military person," Lelouch said, he glanced at his brother trying to figure where this was going.

"Have you thought of looking for someone who will be of aide to you in terms of strategy. I have known Jeremiah for a while, but I think he works better as a knightmare pilot and for your protection," Schneizel said.

Now his brother wanted to keep an eye on him like that? Lelouch turned to the chessboard. Sometimes he thought Schneizel said these things just to make him lose his focus on the game. He shouldn't think too deeply about it. "I will consider that," he said. "Is that what Kanon offers to you?"

"Yes," Schneizel said without explanation, his eyes firmly on the game Lelouch was playing. Always starting, the pawns would make way for the King to move. While he moved the king too much, it was never really easy to check the piece. There were always landmines placed around the king.

"Perhaps you could give him to me and I could use his services," Lelouch offered quietly.

Schneizel's eyes snapped towards Lelouch upon hearing those words. He smiled, his brother was joking. "I already have a list that I can give to you."

"Then do so and I will look at it," Lelouch would not make any promises to Schneizel. "Then, how did things go?"

"Surprisingly, father didn't seem to mind. Normally, he is very difficult when you want something from him," it was likely that the only reason he even allowed this was just so Lelouch could see Nunnally. It wouldn't be out of kindness or anything. When he returns he was likely to be summoned and reminded that Nunnally could still be used.

"I wonder," Lelouch grunted. He contained his happiness. He would be able to touch his sister, eat with her. He would finally be in her presence.

"About?"

Lelouch shook his head. "Nothing of consequence," he said with a shrug. "Was there anything else he said?"

"Yes," Schneizel did not say it immediately. They made a play for about a minute before he finally decided the suspense was enough. "I am no longer allowed to be your messenger. If you want something, you go for it."

Lelouch frowned deeply. That bastard. He was never going to be well if he continued to be in the presence of that man. "I see," he said without emotion.

Schneizel smiled, glad that there was no outward sign of pure contempt from his brother. Lelouch normally failed to restrain his anger towards their father. "It won't be so bad. Once you get used to it, it becomes normal."

"I highly doubt that," Lelouch said. There was nothing about the Emperor's presence that would make him comfortable. "Then, why did you want me to visit Area Eleven?"

"When I see someone with expertise, I don't hesitate to make use of them. I have several projects that I run. Some perhaps are just out of curiosity," Schneizel said. "Earl Lloyd Asplund is making a prototype seventh generation knightmare frame. With the way he talks about it, I am not fully convinced but I have given him the adequate funds to make this."

"What do you want me to do?"

"You are going to military and plan to pilot a knightmare. As my brother and partner, I want to offer this knightmare to you for your use. You can see to its completion."

Lelouch looked up for his brother for a moment. He thought of laughing. This was intentional. Schneizel already knew he was making a play on Lloyd. He made this damn move before he could do anything. This cunning genius wanted him to focus on the knightmare instead of building his own project. The man said he could see its completion, this means that he would have to fund it. His finances were already stretched. He wouldn't have the necessary funds to see other projects. A devious move. Lelouch wanted to applaud his brother but be refrained from doing so.

This was an offer he could not refuse. He did need the knightmare frame. He would need it. It was a necessary tool for his victory within the military.

"If Earl Lloyd is true to his word, the knightmare frame should be equal or greater to the frames used by the Knights of Rounds. Of course if successful, I would have to see if I cannot use him for other things," Schneizel continued in Lelouch's silence.

"I humbly accept this offer, Schneizel," Lelouch said after a couple of moments of silence. He was losing. He hoped this was just in the game. But in life, Schneizel had already played a hand. "I'd sent Villetta to see if he Earl was truly capable so that he could build a knightmare frame for my use."

Lelouch was going to admit that much to Schneizel. There was no need to hide since the man already knew. Of course, he didn't expect his brother to say he knew. Sometimes, many things were better left unsaid. Their relationship had become like that. It was truly a complex relationship, and one mistake, it would be check.

"Now you need focus on that… Starting a whole new process will take time and time you don't have. You could be deployed at any moment now," Schneizel said. He said that, but Schneizel knew exactly when Lelouch would be deployed. He was simply waiting for Cornelia to finish her current duties before making his play.

Lelouch nodded. "Are you really fine with this?"

Schneizel shrugged. "Lloyd isn't the only scientist I have… If it can be useful to you, I see no reason to complain," the Second Prince said. "Has father spoken about marriage with you?"

Lelouch nodded. "First order of business. If I prove to be useless, I'll be useful in that way," he said bitterly. "I'm not getting married to one of your friend's daughter, Schneizel."

"Consider it, nevertheless," Schneizel said calmly. "There is still time. When you make a name for yourself, there will be people who will want their daughters to be married to you. The thing about Britannia's nobility is that while they are quick to judge, they also respect power. They hate you now, but that is because they don't see the value. The moment you start showing your value, you'll see many more smiling at you, wanting to reap the benefits of being associated with you."

"Scavengers," Lelouch muttered darkly. "It won't just be allies gained but enemies gained as well. Some will grow jealous and plot my downfall."

"Unfortunately that is the nature of men," Schneizel frowned looking at the board before him. Lelouch was taking his pieces. It wasn't anything that made him fear checkmate, but he was far from comfortable and if he blinked, his brother would step on him. Would that apply in real life as well? Schneizel smiled. He couldn't wait to find out. "There are certain things we cannot escape from. I'm not loved by everyone. Supporters of our elder brother hate my rise and would love to see me fail."

Lelouch snorted. Who in their right mind would support Odysseus. He was legally the one who would claim the throne if the emperor died unexpectedly. But that man was too much of a cowered to lead this empire. "Those people are just stupid with false fantasies."

Schneizel smiled. "Perhaps but it doesn't change that they don't like me." He said. "I want to trust you, Lelouch. You are partner and the things you do will also affect me as your partner. Your gain is my gain, and my gain is your gain. I at least expect you to trust me."

"Of course," Lelouch said with a smile. "What would a partnership be without trust?"

About an hour later, Lelouch watched Schneizel leave with an expressionless mask on his face. It had been a defeat but nothing unexpected. Once the Second Prince's limousine started to drive away, he walked back towards the palace.

 **With Schneizel**

"You look very pleased, denka," Kanon said seeing Schneizel's satisfied look. "Did you stop the drawing streak?"

The second prince didn't offer an immediate response but his smile stayed in place. What could be say? He was happy with Lelouch. He had a partner who was capable of moving around things. Perhaps he would really have to start trusting that Lelouch could handle things on his own without making dangerous moves that would cost them both. There was no doubt that Lelouch was his brother. There was no doubt that his mind didn't dull while playing the role of a commoner in Area Eleven. Lelouch had evolved and his time away in the wilderness had truly taught him many things. His brother had grown. He was no longer an immature child who thought he could pull everything because he was a prince.

"Yes, I did but I lost," Schneizel finally said.

"What do you mean?"

"While victory was assured, all things considered, Lelouch had a chance to draw the game. Yet he abandoned this and made a reckless move that make sure that I win. It looked reckless at first, but it was calculated. You can lose a battle and still win a war."

"Couldn't you have avoided it?"

Schneizel shook his head. "He had me in check in a couple of more moves. I had no choice but to check…" at that point, Lelouch had known he could not win the game. But he a made a move, a sacrifice of the game just to see what he would do. The aim was to see his response, to understand him better.

Long ago, Lelouch would have never played that hand. He would have taken his draw. But now he was no longer concerned about small victory, a short term gain. He was willing to lose now to gain something greater in the near future. Short term gains amounted to nothing compared to future gains. Schneizel was at least glad that his brother was able to see things this way.

 **Aries Villa**

Jeremiah found Lelouch sitting in his private room, motionlessly staring at the chess board in front of him. He had gone outside to check the perimeter to ensure that things were safe – as he did every night and every morning. With Lelouch, he was not willing to take any chances. It wasn't that he was afraid of Cornelia. If he failed in his duty, he would deserve to be killed by her.

"Jeremiah," Lelouch started without looking away from the chessboard.

"Yes, my Lord."

"You must fear Schneizel when you see him. My brother has not become a feared man within the upper class for nothing," Lelouch said. "You certainly cannot make a move on his backyard and expect him not to notice."

Jeremiah frowned. "You mean about the Earl?"

"Yes, Schneizel knows. He didn't say anything but he knows…"

Jeremiah was silent for a couple of moments. Had Villetta slipped up? Her reports had been good though and she was moving discreetly. No one within the nobility knew that she worked for Prince Lelouch. "Did the Earl say something to him?"

Lelouch shook his head. Lloyd didn't seem like the person who'd do that. "Schneizel has his ways. But he has given me the project the Earl is building. He says since I am going to battle, I may as well pilot it."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"Depends," Lelouch said. "The project requires massive funds which I wanted to use for my own devices. Either way, it doesn't matter now, I have accepted it and will have to come up with a way to raise funds."

"My orange farm can also be useful, my Lord."

Lelouch shook his head. "I have other plans in motion." He said. "For now, we have to prepare for a departure to Area 11 tomorrow in the morning."

Area 11? Lelouch was finally going back to that place. Jeremiah would be most confident to say that Lelouch saw the area as his home than this place he currently resided. "Are you going to see Princess Nunnally?"

"Yes and conduct some business…" Lelouch said. "This is also the last time we get free rides. We might even get called on our way to the Area. Schneizel said the military command deploy me at any moment now. I hope they don't call before I reach Area 11."

"I will make the preparations, my Lord."

 **The following day**

It looked like traveling around within the air was going to be a constant thing for him. There was no other way to travel quickly and for royalty, this was needed. Schneizel already had his own private plane, and he needed to get his own. But his would not be comfort but it would be for military purposes. He was going to be a military general; he would need a flagship. But how was he going to fund such a project when he didn't have the resources available to him? In war, you needed to have the funds to fund the weaponry, the production of knightmares. Those machines got destroyed, and you needed replacements. Arms dealers were certainly making money out of the constant wars that Britannia was waging.

Lelouch didn't want to be cold but he too would have to benefit from the wars. There was no other way he could handle things. But for him to be able to do anything, he would need to iron things with Ruben. The head of the Ashford Foundation had yet to come back to him with his business proposal. Lelouch didn't think there would be any trouble because they were not using the technology. But he could use it. He did need it for his own benefit, for his rise to the very top of Britannia. He didn't just want to be at the top of the military, but Britannia itself.

Lelouch glanced towards the window from the imperial plane was flying on; they were already around in Area 11 and would shortly be landing within the Viceroy Palace. He frowned deeply at the thought of meeting with Clovis. He hadn't even told his brother that he was coming because he didn't want the man to have a party prepared for him upon landing. He didn't come here to have fun; he came here to conduct business and see his beloved sister.

The eleventh prince closed his eyes and waited patiently for the message to come. After a couple of minutes, the message came from the pilot, they were going to descend. Jeremiah was already by him, patiently waiting for the plane to land. When it did land, he was the first to stand up and hurry towards the doors.

Lelouch frowned deeply once he touched down the ground; Clovis was waiting patiently along with Villetta and a couple of guards. He should have made other preparations for his landing. But he wanted to land in secret without the whole of Japan knowing that the Eleventh Prince had landed. If possible, Lelouch wanted to come and go without the media knowing that he was here. It was fine if they found out about his appearance once he was gone.

"Why do you not look happy to see me, brother?" Clovis asked, sounding wounded that his younger brother did not have any desire to see him.

"I was honestly not expecting to see you," Lelouch responded calmly as he walked towards his brother. He glanced at Villetta and acknowledged her presence before turning to face Clovis.

"Is this why you didn't bother telling me you were going to land?" Clovis asked, staring at Lelouch.

Lelouch nodded. "Knowing, you, I didn't want to have reporters waiting for me when I land. I still want to have a private life and don't have time for theatrics and playing with the media," the prince said.

Clovis shook his head with disappointment. "It does look like I need to teach you about the importance of having a good image, brother. When the media is on your side, they write good things about you. You must use them to enhance your reputation. You spent so much time away from the spotlight, you have forgotten about such basic principles," he said before smiling. "But don't worry, I will make sure you are familiar with things once more."

Lelouch shook his head and gave his brother a sharp look. "We will talk later, Clovis. I have to go see my sister," he said.

"If you had told me, I could have made sure that Nunnally was brought here," Clovis said.

"I'm sure you would have loved to have the press snapping pictures as you wheel her into your limousine," Lelouch said in a flat tone. "I still don't want anyone knowing that my sister is in Ashford Academy. She would have people hounding her. And you forget that this area has terrorists. They would no doubt try to do her harm if they learned that a Britannian princess was residing here without the protection of Britannia's army."

"Well, she could always live here with me," Clovis offered with a smile. "I have the best facilities and she could get her education here as well."

"That robs her of the chance to experience the joys of being with others her age," Lelouch said. "And don't think of sending knightmares to Ashford academy," he said with a stare. "That would just turn the academy into a military base or training camp than a school."

Clovis sighed. "You are still difficult to reason with as always," he said. "Wherever you are going, please return before 8pm. I have prepared a banquet for you. You will meet my friends and perhaps make friends of your own," he said grinning wildly.

Lelouch felt like going back on his plane. He didn't tell Clovis about his presence because of this but it does look like the man had found and prepared things for him. He should have chosen to land elsewhere. This was going to be troublesome. Well, he could always tell his brother that he had received a call from military and he was being deployed. That would get him out of the troublesome situation his brother wanted to put him in.

"Fine," he grunted.

"Excellent," Clovis brightened up. "Bring someone with you. And don't be late. I have prepared proper clothes for you to wear. This darkness doesn't do it for me. You should really talk to me about such things, Lelouch." He said with a shake of his head.

Lelouch didn't say anything to Clovis regarding this. "I will see you later, Clovis," he said twisting away from Clovis.

"Remember, don't be late. I won't start without you!"

Lelouch merely shook his head and ignored the annoying voice of his brother. Villetta led him to a small car. Lelouch looked at it for a moment before shaking his head. He said he wanted something that would not attract attention, but this was a bit too much. Perhaps he could take Clovis'. No, this would do. He silently walked into the car that Jeremiah decided to drive while Villetta sat at the backseat with him. "It is good to see you in one piece, Villetta." He said with a smile.

"Likewise, your Highness," Villetta said with smile.

"I read your reports, and I was impressed with it. Once we get deployed and begin our military campaign, perhaps I will give that job to you," Lelouch said.

"Thank you, your Highness," Villetta said. "When do we get deployed?" She asked curiously. She was getting a bit bored sitting here without any action. But she did know that things would become dangerous soon. She had signed up for this job knowing this after all.

"Very soon," Lelouch said. "We are going to see Earl Lloyd, Jeremiah. We will see him before going to Ashford Academy. I want to handle some business with him first before dealing with things on the other side. You do know where the Earl conducts his work, right?"

"Of course, Your Highness," Jeremiah said. "I know most things about Britannia's military occurring within this area. Being leader of the Purist Faction had its privileges."

"Speaking of which," Villetta started in a cautious tone. "We seem to have earned ourselves some enemies, Lord Jeremiah. Perhaps on your side especially since you are a noble and a former leader. The nobles who once supported the faction are not pleased with your actions and will do anything to sabotage you to make sure you are ruined for abandoning them to join His Highness."

"I don't really care for what those people think," Jeremiah said carelessly.

"Be concerned about this, Jeremiah!" Villetta said a bit sternly. "There are powerful people with enough pull in the military to make things work in their favor. You seem to forget that His Highness also has his enemies as well."

"Villetta is indeed correct," Lelouch said. "I want a list of such people. We will look at them and see if there isn't anything I can do. Maybe I have even found myself playing a game with one of them if they frequent this area. That aside, we don't want the whole military trying to stab us in the back. If that happens, we become too dependent on Schneizel having our backs and I can't have that."

Jeremiah agreed to draw a list of the nobles who supported the Purist Faction during his time as its leader and they drive peacefully without any troubles. Despite the are suffering terrorist threats, there wasn't much of what disturbed them as they headed towards where Lloyd was based. When they finally arrived at the place, Villetta took the lead.

"Ah, if it isn't the lost prince himself," Lloyd said as Lelouch walked towards him and his assistant. "You've finally decided to come here yourself."

Cecile hit Lloyd on his ribs before bowing respectfully. "Your Highness," she greeted the Eleventh Prince.

Lelouch smiled towards the woman and then turned towards Lloyd with a smile on his lips. "Did Schneizel give you the message?" he asked calmly.

"What message?" Lloyd asked.

"Your project, the Lancelot," Lelouch said.

Lloyd frowned. "I'm afraid there hasn't been much progress in that regard. Schneizel seems blind to see the true work that I want to build. He hasn't been really forthcoming with funding."

Lelouch was amused to hear someone call Schneizel like that. Blind as well? Well, the Earl really did seem like a person of character. "From what I have seen, you have been given adequate funding… it just balloons every now and then. You also seem to struggle to work within your budget."

"Budget is just in the way when building the Lancelot," Lloyd said carelessly.

"From what you have said, there doesn't seem to be much progress. I can't put my trust in something like that. Schneizel has entrusted the Lancelot to me. I will be the one providing the funding but I will not waste my money funding something that is a dream of a scientist who doesn't appreciate that money is an important commodity that isn't fished in the sea." Lelouch said in a stern tone.

"Well, if we could fish for it, I wouldn't have begged Schneizel for funding," Lloyd said. "Follow me, your Highness! I will show you what I am building. You will be impressed. Schneizel will be envious of it once I have finished building it."

Lelouch allowed, Lloyd to lead him towards the hangar where the Lancelot was being built. The first thing Lelouch noticed was that it was white. It was so like Schneizel. But he didn't care about the color. He was most interested in its capabilities. "I'm listening," he said to Lloyd.

Lloyd was more than happy explain in details about his Lancelot. The Earl spoke about the knightmare frame in glowing terms. Lelouch was impressed. After listening the Earl, he demanded the specs. "Cecile," Lloyd said to his assistant. "Give our new sponsor what he needs," he said before turning to Lelouch. "So, when will the funds be available?"

Lelouch smiled. "You are talking a seventh generation knightmare frame, Lloyd. And I struggle to believe some of the things you have just said. But I will make funds available tomorrow. However, I want results within a month. I will come and demand to see this thing in action. If you cannot deliver, I will have it torn into pieces and sold to recover my money. If that isn't enough, we will work out a way to recover the lost funds."

Lloyd appeared not to have heard the other words Lelouch said aside from what he said about the money being available tomorrow. "Well, I have work to do. Cecile will show you the way out."

"Have some respect, Lloyd," Jeremiah warned.

Lelouch merely smiled. "If you build this, Lloyd, there will be other parts of things that I want to build that you will build for me," Lelouch received the specs from Cecile before turning away along with his two guards. "Well, that was interesting…"

"He lacks respect," Jeremiah said in a stern tone.

Lelouch shrugged. "Let us hurry to Ashford Academy. I don't doubt that my brother will not start his little party until I arrive," he said.

 **Ashford Academy**

Lelouch had walked faster than both Jeremiah and Villetta after they secretly went to Ashford Academy. He had already sent Sayako a message to ensure that she was home to welcome them and that Nunnally was around. At least he didn't come across that mischievous devil dressed as a blonde woman going by the name of Milly. She wouldn't have made things easy for him had she been the one welcoming him and she would have made a show out of the situation. Lelouch didn't need it – he just wanted to see his younger sister. He just wanted to see Nunnally. For now, nothing else mattered. Not military, not Charles and his wars. The only thing that was on his mind was Nunnally.

"Master Lelouch," Sayako greeted Lelouch as she opened the door to his former residence.

Lelouch smiled towards the maid and returned the greeting before stepping inside. He rushed towards his sister – she was sitting on her wheelchair, hands held together, head towards the door. She could hear the sounds, but she could not see. It was cruel. It would have been at least something else if she could see, but she could not and Lelouch blamed the emperor for this. He blamed that cold bastard for this that has fallen on his precious sister.

The Eleventh Prince knelt before Nunnally and gently took her hands. She quickly recognized them and smiled brightly. "Brother!"

The smile on her lips – such sweet and innocent. It was beautiful. It always made Lelouch feel like he was living elsewhere. How could anyone not love this smile. "It is me, Nunnally," Lelouch returned his sister's smile.

"I was so happy when Sayako told me you would come to see me," she started. "How is Pendragon? Did you speak to father? How are our other siblings treating you? Milly said you were going to military, is it true? Is it what father decided you should do?"

Lelouch smiled. "One question at a time, Nunnally," he said.

Nunnally smiled a bit bashfully. "Sorry, brother. I have just missed you. You have always been around me since we came here. You were always with me. Milly comes almost everyday, but…" she was not her brother. She was not Lelouch. She could not replace the love and warmth of her brother.

"I miss you too, Nunnally," Lelouch said in a quiet tone. "Tell me about school… you haven't been too sad about my departure that your grades have started to fall, have you?"

Villetta looked at the scene with surprise. She had come to the Academy a couple of times but she'd never met Lelouch's sister. She hadn't been around him for too long but she never thought she'd see him so human. He was a Britannian Prince and yet before his crippled sister, he looked like a normal boy. An older brother who loved his sister dearly.

A cripple… she hadn't been like this always, had she? No, she had been a perfectly healthy girl who could stand but because of the incident that resulted in her mother's death, this was what had become of her and that was how much Lelouch loved her. They seemed to be in a world of their own. It was a precious moment though. Regardless of what happens, Villetta would never forget this day.

"Who could have thought that a Britannian Princess would be guarded by an Eleven," Villetta said. There was no contempt in her tone. She just found it ironic given that it was the Imperial family that came up with the discrimination rule book and the numbering system.

"His Highness trusts her dearly. She has been caring for Her Highness since they started living here," Jeremiah said in a quiet tone. "We should stand outside to give them their moment."

While she wanted to watch, Villetta understood and nodded her head before they stepped outside.

 **End of chapter**

 **This concludes this chapter. I'll try to post chapter 7 next week.**

 **Milly's thing with Lelouch will take some time to build. I'm still working around how Lelouch gets around the point of asking Milly to marry her. Another thing that complicates things is that Lelouch goes off to fight in chapter 8 and this first war action for him takes a couple of chapters to conclude.**

 **What else is there? Ah, yes, Lelouch will still play politics with Schneizel. He'll be drifting between war and politics.**

 **This is based in an AU, some major characters in canon will not be major characters here. And of course, we can't forget about Geass. He will have it. But That's not happening any time soon. That just means that Lelouch will not be staying in Area 11 any time soon.**

 **If there is anything else, please pm me.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage**


	7. Chapter 7

Ruben smiled seeing Lelouch enter his office. The Prince had told him that he would come to discuss things in person. But Ruben did not have good news. Milly would not be forced to do anything she didn't want – she was like her mother in that regard. Either way, he still did think that he could work out something with Lelouch. Perhaps even a partnership. If Lelouch had things working out for him, it could be beneficial to the family. He had no interest in developing knightmares. He was only interested in seeing that his family's fortunes were restored. But he did need to solve a couple of things. It would have been nice if he had another granddaughter who was willing to marry Lelouch. Perhaps he was being selfish and greedy, but it was for sake of family and as its head, he had to try everything.

"Prince Lelouch," Ruben said as the black haired Prince settled down in front of his desk.

"Ruben," Lelouch acknowledged. He glanced at the man for a moment before speaking in a serious tone. He hadn't come here to reminisce about past memories. He was looking at the future. "I hope you have some good news for me."

"About your proposal," Ruben said before falling silent.

"Yes; about that proposal I made. You said you needed time to think about it," Lelouch said.

Ruben nodded. "About that… you see, that is almost the only thing that Ashfords hold that could be of value to anyone seeking anything from us. When we were making matches for Milly, we made this as part of the proposal as it was about the only thing we could give."

Lelouch stared. This kind of thing hadn't come up the last time they had spoken. He resisted the urge to frown knowing that this man was taking things to another level. He didn't think that Ruben would try to swindle him. There had to be something that the man wanted. "What are you saying?"

"My family's name no longer means much… Why do you think we have been trying to get Milly married to a noble family? We want to regain our noble status. But unless someone really does love our Milly, no marriage is going to happen unless there is something to gain by marrying into us," Ruben said. "I don't want to sell the technology and have nothing to offer."

Lelouch shook his head with disappointment. Ruben disappointed him. Why was the man so insisting on becoming a noble again? Lelouch held no love for the nobility. They were not good people and was Ruben forgetting how this noble status betrayed him last time around? "Do you not want me to gain your technology, Ruben?" He asked with narrowed eyes.

"It isn't that," Ruben said with a shake of his head. "I would be more than willing to give it to you for free. We have no use for it anyway," he said.

"But you have other plans," Lelouch said before falling silent for a couple of moments. "This is disappointing. I thought we would have a deal."

Lelouch needed this to work for him because he needed to begin his secret project right away. He could not stay behind Schneizel. The fact that his brother was willing to toss a seventh generation Knightmare frame to him meant that he had other bigger projects. That aside, he had said it himself – Lloyd wasn't the only scientist he had in his pockets. He needed to be able to compete and the technology the Ashfords had was going to give him a starting point. He had no alternative plans. This had to work even if it meant he had to force things through.

But how did he go about things when it was like this? Ruben wanted to become a noble again. Thinking of this, Lelouch remembered Milly's situation and what he had said to her before he returned to Pendragon. What had he been thinking then? He had been bitter, yes. But he had meant those words. Still, what could he do? "How about we form a partnership, Ruben?" Lelouch said. "It will allow you to keep some interest in the technology and in the near future, I will do something about your noble status. I did tell Milly that I would do something about her situation."

Ruben smiled upon hearing those words. "A partnership?" He paused, thinking. He didn't know if he should tell Lelouch about what he had told Milly. He shook his head. He needed to resolve issues with her first.

"Yes, it will only be temporary until your noble status is fixed," Lelouch said calmly. "That aside, with what I plan, the name of the Ashford should become famous once more."

"I'm listening…"

Lelouch shook his head. "Do we have a deal, Ruben? I need an answer now. I cannot afford to be playing around and wasting time. I need things to start moving quickly before I am deployed."

Ruben was silent for a couple of moments before nodding his head. "I can work with that… yes, we have a deal."

Lelouch smirked. "Excellent; I will send the paperwork before the day ends." He said. "Tell me, what do you know about knightmare distribution within this Area? There are terrorist groups. Who funds them? Who gives them their knightmares?"

"I do not know, your Highness, but I can find out…" Ruben offered.

Lelouch shook his head. "No, I will work out something. You don't want those kind of groups catching you sniffing around their business. You'd find some people with connections to Britannia funding terrorists and when you do, they'll try to eliminate you."

"Possibly," Ruben said. "What do you have in mind?"

"I have no preference when it comes to hiring people to work for me," Lelouch said with a shrug of his shoulders. "For now, you won't have a problem being in charge of the foundation, no? But I don't want my name in it, for now at least."

"What will the foundation be doing, Lelouch?"

"Research and development," Lelouch said without going into detail. "We will talk about it some time. Oh yes, we will need to use the basement for research purposes… Solar panels will be delivered probably in the next seven days. Once I have sent you the plans, you'll know what to do." Lelouch said as he stood up. "I will call you before I leave the Area. I'm afraid my time is limited here and I must leave before the academy notices my presence."

Ruben realized that Lelouch hadn't stopped planning things even when he told him he would think about things. The Prince had been planning things even though he hadn't received any answer from him. "I will wait upon those plans."

Lelouch nodded and stepped out of the office. His hair nearly stood up when he closed the door behind him. There was a blonde woman standing by his right, leaning against the wall with her hands folded below his bust.

"Milly…" Lelouch greeted with a smile.

The blonde acted as if she hadn't heard him for a couple of moments. Finally, she got away from the wall and stalked towards the eleventh prince. She stood just inches away from him before smiling. "Nop, I'm still taller," she said.

Lelouch blinked before shaking his head while chuckling lightly. "It has only been a couple of months, Milly," he said.

"You went away on a training trip, I thought you would be taller," Milly said looking straight at her childhood friend.

"I went away to improve myself physically to be able to handle the stress of piloting a knightmare and pulling all-nighters not learn new methods of growing tall," Lelouch responded in a flat tone.

"Oh?" Milly smiled dangerously. "So you have become physically stronger now, eh?"

Lelouch felt uncomfortable seeing Milly smile like that. She was never planning something good for him. Whatever she plotted always had to end up with him being humiliated. Still, he could still not allow her to continue mocking him. "If you must know, I have improved. I may not look like it, but yes, I have improved."

"So, now you'll be able to carry your wife bridal style going up the stairs of Aries Villa to your bedroom without breaking your back?" Milly asked. "Somehow I doubt that."

"If I carry you, will you drop it, Milly?" Lelouch was full of confidence. He could do it. He had picked up some weights. He would not be mocked even by Euphemia or Cornelia. Or maybe his elder sister will think it wasn't enough.

Milly tilted her head to the side, smiling. "His Highness carrying Milly Ashford?" She paused for a moment, thinking. "Can you even do it?"

"If I do it, will you stop with this subject and about my height? You are even older than me!"

"Boys grow taller faster," Milly said. "But I am not making any promises, not when I don't believe that the mighty Lulu can pick me up. Your name doesn't even speak of stre-"

Milly wasn't able to finish as Lelouch suddenly picked up with both his heads. She was surprised but she didn't show it. When his violet eyes stared at her, her heart raced a bit, but she still didn't show it. She just smiled. "Well, that happened…"

"Happy now?"

Milly adopted a thoughtful look on her face, enjoying being held by Lelouch. She had thought of this moment. She had thought it would be a little romantic than this. Still, it did make her feel excited. "Not until someone snaps a picture of us…"

"It will be picture of you dropping on the floor with me running away," Lelouch said with an expressionless look on his face. He then gently allowed Milly to stand on her feet. "You just wanted me to carry you, didn't you?" He asked with a stare.

"That was your choice," Milly said with an innocent smile. "I didn't force you. You even took me by force…"

"You led me to it!" Lelouch said with a glare. He then sighed and shook his head. "So much for not falling for your tricks… You were waiting for me…"

"Well you didn't tell me you were coming," Milly said with a stare.

"Because I didn't want to be bothered," Lelouch said. "Come on, walk with me. I have to go away and you obviously want to talk to me. Besides, we don't want someone seeing us in a passage like this."

"You had no problems before…"

"I was just your Vice President then," Lelouch said. "But now I am Britannian Prince."

Milly shrugged. "Technically, you are still Vice President of the Student Council and you were a Prince back then. You just refused to live like it or admit it. Well, nothing has changed with how I view you." She grinned. "Even if you become the Emperor, you'll always be Lulu and I'll always be taller than you."

Lelouch groaned. He didn't have the energy to pick up this argument with Milly. "What do you want, Milly?"

"What? I can't talk to you now?" Lelouch gave her a stare causing her to turn a bit serious as she spoke. "What were you discussing with my grandfather?"

"The Ashford Foundation… I want to use it," Lelouch said.

It did look like her grandfather didn't say anything to Lelouch about what he told her. This was a serious problem. Then again, it he had said something, Lelouch would have been acting differently. "I see," Milly said. "Why?"

"Why? I need it…" Lelouch said. "Where is this going, Milly?"

"I just want to know your intentions. This doesn't have anything to do with the Ashfords or me, right?"

Lelouch shook his head. "If it had something to do with you, I would have told you or otherwise, you would torment me. This is nothing to do with you. I just want the technology your family developed," he said calmly.

"Ah, that's a pity," Milly said. "You said you were going to do something about my situation since you returned to the Imperial family. But since you returned, it has all been you and you. You didn't forget about me, did you? And you do know that if you don't do something, my family is going to marry me so some old fart with the belly the size of an elephant and sons older than me."

Lelouch snorted. "Like you'd agree to it," he said with a roll of his eyes. "He would have to slim first and even when, you might still just say he was better when he was fat," he said.

Milly laughed. "You make it sound as if I am cruel, Lulu…" she said.

"Well, aren't you?"

"I'm delightful," Milly said.

"My memories beg to differ," Lelouch said. "Is your grandfather still fixing you up with candidates?"

Milly shook her head. "No, not at the moment," she said. "But who knows when it might return. He was probably thinking of using you…."

Lelouch snorted. "Not like he hasn't thought of it before," he said before falling silent. "Clovis is hosting a party of some sort tonight. Escort me," he said.

Milly stopped walking and placed her hands on her hips before speaking. "Are you asking me or telling me?"

Lelouch frowned. "Asking…" he said.

"I didn't hear you clearly; do it again," she said.

Lelouch glared at Milly for a moment but she didn't break. Nothing was ever easy with her, was it? He should have known that she would even make this difficult. He suppressed the urge to sigh and faced the blonde with a smile. "Milly Ashford, will you do me the honor of escorting me to Clovis' party tonight at the Viceroy's Palace?"

Milly adopted a thoughtful look on her face. "It is on short notice and I'll need to get a dress for the occasion. Knowing Prince Clovis, there will be many prominent people… still; I don't know if I can make it…"

"Milly…"

"Really Lelouch, it is short notice…"

"Milly," Lelouch warned. He would end up taking Villetta if Milly wanted him get on his knees.

Milly smiled. "It will me an honor, Your Highness," she said with a slight bow of her head.

"Will you make it? It starts at eight…"

"You'll pick me up." Milly said. "And pay for my new dress."

"Fine," Lelouch said. "Anything else?"

"I'll text you," Milly said.

"I'll see you later then," Lelouch said before turning away from the blonde.

 **Minutes Later**

Lelouch was sitting in a car with both Villetta and Jeremiah. He looked tired. A conversation with Milly was always a mission. He always had to stay on his toes or else that woman would put him in a trap he would not be able to escape. "Well all things considered, things worked out," he said with his eyes staring outside the window.

"My Lord?" Jeremiah asked.

"We are ready to begin with the Ashford Foundation project. This will be my major project. I will have Lloyd build some things for me because of his genius," Lelouch said.

"You have never shared any plans with us," Villetta said cautiously.

There hadn't been a need to tell them anything. Everything was still just a plot that he was working on. And he didn't need anything to spill. Besides, some things were better kept to himself. It wasn't that he didn't trust them. He did have reservations with Villetta. But this journey to this Area and having her run errands for him had been merely a test run to see if she could be trusted. He trusted Jeremiah but even the man could be fooled. Those issues were handled though. Otherwise, he would not have allowed her to see him in a moment of weakness with Nunnally. But then that also had her see another side of him. Emotional exploit wasn't a problem and he could use it without a problem.

The project with the Ashford Foundation would bring him towards his goal of conquering what needs to be conquered and influenced. "I wasn't just busy training during the three-month period I was away," Lelouch started calmly. "I was also busy forming some connections and doing research. In order to influence things, you need to have power. I need military and what better way to influence military than through knightmare frames?"

"My Lord?"

Lelouch almost sighed. He needed to explain things in detail. "Britannia is always looking to improve in knightmare capabilities to improve its military power. That aside, there is never a shortage of usage for knightmare frames, as long as the war still continues. In Japan, you have the Kyoto House which is responsible for knightmare production and the management of Sakuradite production. In the near future, the Ashford Foundation will also become a major player. But that will need Sakuradite. That isn't a problem though. Part of the reason I came here was to obtain a supply of the energy source."

"Who will supply?"

Lelouch merely smiled. "Villetta, there is a student called Nina Einstein, she has a rather curious mind. I want to see her tomorrow. I'm afraid if I don't capture her now, someone else will see her talents and take her." Besides, she was a vital piece of the Ashford Foundation.

"I will make arrange that," Villetta said.

This was a reason to smile; Jeremiah didn't hide his excitement. Although Lelouch had left the details to himself, it was no doubt that things were working towards the good path. Yes, his master's plans were coming along. Nothing pleased Jeremiah more than this. "Does this mean that we will get the Knightmare frames you said we'd get?"

Lelouch didn't offer an immediate response. He would need to have Lloyd work with the Ashford Foundation in secret if he was going to get something worked out quickly. But if they were going to end up being deployed any moment now, they would have to do with the knightmares currently in use. "Yes, but not now. In our first crusade, there will be nothing fancy. Besides, if we just start with fancy toys, we will attract too much attention."

"I wouldn't mind it," Jeremiah said with excitement. "The call is taking too long to come though. I haven't been in action within a knightmare in quite some time. War brings out the best of my abilities."

"I hope by that you don't mean fighting recklessly," Villetta said. "In our next battle, it won't just be for the politics of the Purist Faction but it will be on the grand scale of Britannia's advances."

"The main stage," Lelouch said. "Well, even I am excited. I want to see what we can do. How much action we get will depend on where we are deployed. Well, for now, we can just rest easy. Once we set forth, we will be having constant battles and unless we claim victory, we cannot go back home."

For Lelouch Vi Britannia, there was no option of failure. The nobles would laugh and spit at him. The emperor would hook him out of military and make him a political tool once more. Schneizel would certainly be disappointed. The little friends he would make would certainly desert him. But even if that happened, Lelouch would not allow that be the end of him. As long as he was alive, Lelouch would continue to fight. He would continue to march on towards the path of glory, for his wish, for his revenge.

And for Nunnally's dream world.

 **Later**

Milly had a content smile on her lips as she slowly walked towards Lelouch's limousine. There was no need for secrecy this time around; they were going to walk into the eyes of the public. Perhaps it would raise her stock. She would certainly be on the lips of some certain nobles after tonight. Who didn't like a delightful young blonde girl belonging to the Ashford family? They might not be nobles anymore, but they weren't doing bad either. They did have several non-profit projects that were focused on education. They had stayed away from the things that made them rich before. It hadn't ended pleasantly after all.

The Eleventh Prince was waiting for her standing outside of the car. He was dressed a royal white. Milly smiled. "I know you didn't pick this attire," she said looking straight at Lelouch.

"Clovis insisted," Lelouch said with a frown on his lips. "But I did manage to make some alterations. This was a compromise," he said.

"Well, you look like a Prince," Milly said.

"I don't feel like one," Lelouch said. He was going to be paraded around once more. But it would not be unpleasant this time around. He already had some encounters with the nobles around this area, so they would know him. They weren't going to be pissed – at least most of them. "Come on, we have a long night ahead of ahead of us," he said, opening the door for Milly to enter the car.

The blonde folded her hands across her chest and did not move, not a muscle. She stared at the prince before speaking. "You are not doing this properly, Lelouch," she said with a shake of her head.

Lelouch turned back to face Milly with a stare. They had come this far and she was going to be difficult with him? He groaned. This was going to be indeed a long night. "Forgive me for not having experience," he said.

"Whose fault is that?" Milly asked. "Well, you have never been a ladies man, Lelouch," she said. "You should at least let Rivalz teach you a couple of things. He would know what to do in this situation."

Lelouch frowned. "I remember having many girls chasing after me," he said.

"I could never understand what they see in you," Milly said. "If I am going to enjoy myself, you are going to have to treat me like a lady, Lelouch. Tonight, I am not your President, I am not your childhood friend – I am your date for the night," she then winked. "If I am pleased, you'll be free to do whatever you want with me tonight."

Lelouch allowed his mind to wander for a moment before he quickly rubbed away those unpleasant thoughts. "A date, huh?" He said. "Well, it isn't like I wasn't taught how to treat a lady. Perhaps it is the fact that it is you that I am forgetting," he said stepping closer to Milly. He took her right and kissed it before looking into her eyes. She was wearing a long blue dress, it exposed a bit of her chest, her hair was tied up neatly. He thought he liked regular Milly. "You look beautiful, Milly," he said with a smile.

"Thank you, you highness," Milly said with a warm smile. "You look handsome yourself," she said as she allowed Lelouch to lead her into the car.

"Well, I am a Britannian prince. I do have an image that I must uphold," he said smiling. Once the settled in, he released a long breath.

Milly giggled. "You only had to do that for a couple of seconds and already you are worn out?" She said. "But it wasn't so bad."

"My mother did teach me a couple of things… and I had plenty of practice with Euphie and Nunnally," Lelouch thought fondly of those memories as the limousine drove towards the Viceroy Palace. "I'm sorry for dragging you like this on such a short notice. Clovis surprised me when I landed."

Milly shook her head. "I'm not complaining," she said. "Besides, it has been a while since I went out like this. Your company isn't so bad either," she said.

Lelouch eyed her for a moment, "You are not plotting something twisted, are you?"

"I know the time and place, Lelouch," Milly said. "Despite my love for secrets, I kept the fact that you are a prince to myself all these years. Do you know how many times I wanted to say it but had to keep my mouth shut?"

"You worked around that by making my life a misery and trying to learn any other secret I might hold," Lelouch pointed out. He then smiled. "Well, the memories were pleasant. And you were a big part of it. I never did thank you for it, did I?"

"You've never been the thankful type," Milly said. "But it was also fun for me. I hope soon, we will be able to make many more memories like that. I think it will be even more fun now with you officially a royal prince," she said grinning happily.

"I'm not going to step into Ashford Academy if you are smiling like that," Lelouch said in a flat tone. He then leaned back to his seat and fell silent. Milly didn't say anything either. The rest of the journey towards the Viceroy's Palace was silent. It was not a tense silence, it was comfortable. Both were lost in their thoughts, thinking about the past, present and future.

When the limousine stopped, Lelouch turned towards Milly; she was staring right back at him. She was the first to speak. Her tone was serious. "Did you think through things, Lulu? After your mother died, we were stripped of our titles and forced to flee mainland. You do understand what this will mean to the people outside, do you? What will the emperor even say?"

Lelouch was silent for a couple of moments before responding with a smile. "I did consider that," he said. "But you don't have to worry, Milly. I will always have enemies as long as I live. Your family took a risk taking both Nunnally and I in, I cannot and will not forget that. this is nothing," he said. "Besides, I am most worried about you… you know, school," he said.

It took a moment for a Milly to realize the kind of drama that this was going to bring. She cringed at the thought of those who liked Lelouch hounding her for answers. The media was going to play around with the idea that her family had been waiting for this moment. She was going to have a nightmare of a day tomorrow. But she could handle it. it was nothing compared to the risk Lelouch was taking, wasn't it?

"That is going to be a problem but let us not that ruin the night," Milly said holding out her right hand.

Slowly, Lelouch helped her out of the limo and they stepped into the red carpet. Lelouch felt a snap of a camera and then the flashes. Ah, this was going to resound in Britannia tomorrow. Schneizel was going to have a fit and question his motives. Lelouch could feel a headache coming his way. He was brought out of his thoughts when Milly's shoulder touched his, her hand holding onto his, her smile was firm.

"Shall we, my lady?" He felt like saying at that moment.

"Let us, Your highness," Milly said as they started walking through the red carpet.

The doors towards the hall were closed. Lelouch turned towards Milly and then spoke. "I forgot to mention this, but we are probably going to be the centre of attention…" he said. "If I feel like running, hold me tightly."

Milly laughed at this. "You are a prince, Lulu!" She said with a nudge on his right shoulder.

The doors slowly opened and they stepped in. it was nothing but darkness and when they entered, a spotlight was fixed on them.

"Introducing, the Seventieth in line to the throne, Eleventh Prince of Britannia, his Royal Highness, Lelouch vi Britannia and Miss Milly Ashford!"

More lights flicked one through the narrow red line made by the red carpet. There were people standing in the side lines. Lelouch had to give Clovis a hand for managing to gather so many people in such a short time. Well, he was the Viceroy, when he called for a party, people came in a hurry. On the other end of the hall, Clovis was standing with a smile, a glass of wine at hand.

Both Lelouch and Milly walked slowly walked towards the Third Prince without saying a word to the other. Once they reached the Third Prince, the lights flicked on. Lelouch could see the many people around the hall. He could see some faces he had played chess with before. The rest were complete strangers, but of course, they were Britannians.

Clovis cleared his throat. "For many years, I was filled with anguish and sadness at the thought that my younger brother had died. Lelouch and I grew up together, we were very close. When news came that he had died, I was filled with sadness. I had even come to this Area hoping I would find him…" he paused, looking around the room. "But finally, we found him months ago. I was filled with happiness. I wanted to throw a party to celebrate his return, but he was not well, he had to return to Pendragon to get treatment. This is why you have not seen much of him. But my brother has returned, and tonight, we celebrate his return!"

Lelouch held himself from laughing. This was the excuse that they were going to give? Clovis hadn't said anything specific but basically, he had been suffering from memory loss. The emperor hadn't sad anything and the people were questioning things. Well, someone like Schneizel wouldn't want people to think that he had been hiding from the imperial family all these years.

"Now, I would like to give my brother a moment to say something," Clovis said with a smile.

Lelouch glared at Clovis. This hadn't been part of the arrangement. The brother of his just pretended as if he didn't see his glare and pulled him away from Milly. Lelouch composed himself and looked around with a smile. "The past years, I have lived in this Area; I have lived with both Britannians and Elevens. I learned many things living like a commoner. I am glad that I was found once more, and I am happy that the Imperial Family welcomed me back. For Britannia, I live."

After saying those words, Lelouch turned to Milly as Clovis got the party underway. It took a moment for him to stop seething and then speak to Milly – who looked amused. "Well, that wasn't so bad," she said.

"I hate being ambushed like that," he said. "It doesn't make it easy since some people around here know me. I really couldn't afford to say anything outward, lest there be trouble back at Pendragon. I'm sure my little speech is going to played in the news tomorrow."

"It wasn't bad," Clovis said joining the two. "Drink?" He said offering Lelouch a glass of wine.

"I don't drink," Lelouch said.

"Come on," Clovis said shoving the drink on Lelouch's hand. "This is your night. And we are royalty, normal rules don't apply to us. You can't be drinking water at a night like this. Juice is for Nunnally…" he said. He then turned towards Milly and smiled charmingly. "Miss Ashford, you turned my gloomy brother a bright person tonight. If you like, you can stay here for tonight and will give you a proper thank you," he said.

Milly smiled. "Thank you, Your Highness," she said. "But Prince Lelouch has already promised me a 'thank you' that I'm really looking forward to," she said.

Clovis wasn't disappointed the least. He turned to Lelouch with a smile. "You'll tell me all about it tomorrow," he said. "Can I steal him for a moment? I want to introduce him to a couple of my friends. Don't worry, I won't leave you alone and I will return him shortly."

"I don't mind," Milly said.

Clovis thanked her and dragged Lelouch. "You brought the Ashford girl?" He asked. "If you didn't have anyone to bring, you could have told me, Lelouch. I could have organized something for you."

"What was all that back there with Milly?" Lelouch asked, seeing how the brother of his had been smiling at Milly.

"I have an image to uphold and I can't show my displeasure to someone who hosted you. Well, I don't have a problem with her. She is a delightful lady. However, she isn't a noble anymore. You must play with those in your class, Lelouch," Clovis said those words sternly.

Lelouch didn't say anything, he allowed himself to be dragged on autopilot. He didn't have the energy to defend himself to Clovis. Besides, it was pointless. Nothing Clovis would say was going to change how he viewed Milly or her family. The Viceroy took him through to some of his donors and some who he had played around with in a game of chess. One of the nobles even wanted a rematch, which seemed to bore Clovis. But Lelouch knew, it was because he was no good at it.

It took about fifteen minutes for the introductions to be done with and once done, Lelouch returned to Milly. He found her in the company of a young gentleman. She introduced them before excusing herself to be with him. "You look drained," she said.

"Clovis," Lelouch said with a slight shake of his head.

They lingered around for a bit before the dancing times came. After the first dance, Lelouch told Clovis he would be leaving. Of course, there was some resistance, but they did end up leaving and Lelouch chose to accompany Milly back to her home along with Jeremiah. There was enough room in the palace but Ruben would surely kill him if he kept his granddaughter away for the night. If the media found out about it, it would certainly ruin her marriage plans and any chance of marriage.

"Thank you for coming with me, Milly," Lelouch said after they stepped outside of the car. "I would not have survived without you."

"I'm glad I could help," Milly said. "Besides, it was pleasant being in the other side of things again. I'm sure you'll have a lot of questions to answer when you return to Pendragon."

"I likely won't have time for it. It won't be long before I head to war. They will forget about it and focus on my efforts in the war," Lelouch said with a shrug. "But you'll face it," he said.

"Like I said, it won't be a problem," she said.

Lelouch nodded and fell silent for a couple of moments before speaking. "Did you see anyone you like?"

Milly smiled and closed the distance between her and Lelouch. "I don't know if you are just dense or if you just ignore things because you don't want to focus on it. Shirley, Rivalz, they speak about love, but you, the only person you seem to love is Nunnally," she said, staring into Lelouch's eyes.

"And you?"

Milly ignored Lelouch's question and leaned closer to him. She kissed him, causing him to freeze. She was amused though. She hadn't expected anything less from him. "How do I look somewhere else when the person I like is right in front of me?" Milly asked in a quiet tone.

For a long minute, Lelouch stood frozen. He then shook his head, and smiled. "Rivalz will kill me," he said.

"Shirley will kill me," Milly said.

They shared a smile.

"I have never really thought about romantic things. Things have always been different for me. Even when I said I would do something about your situation, I really didn't know what I would do. But my promise to you is that you won't marry anyone you don't like, Milly and you won't marry just to regain your family's status. What I have learned in this life is that it is the power of our desires that moves us. I have thought of many things, and my dreams now come because of my love for Nunnally and the desire to see the world she dreams of to life." He smiled. "If the day comes that she is able to open her eyes again, I want her to see a gentle world."

"I'm sure you'll make that happen," Milly said with a confident smile. "You are the smartest person I know," she said. "I will keep reminding you about your promise. And I won't allow you to get away from it."

"I'd experience hell if I tried otherwise," Lelouch said.

Milly grinned. "You know it," she said. "Good night, Lelouch."

"Night, Milly, and thank you, for everything," Lelouch said turning away from the blonde. Slowly, he walked towards his limo and when he stepped in, he found Jeremiah staring at him. "Don't say anything," he said.

Jeremiah smiled. "I was just thinking if that was your first kiss, Your Highness," the man said.

"Of course not," Lelouch said.

"Being kissed by your half-sister doesn't count," Jeremiah said with a smile.

Lelouch said nothing.

 **The Following Day**

Milly had a wide smile as she entered the Student Council room. She had all the reasons to be happy. The night before had been fruitful. She hadn't expected Lelouch to say anything to her about marriage but least she had brought it to his attention. He would think about it. If things had gone differently, she would have thought she was dealing with an imposter. When it came to women, Lelouch was clueless and needed a helping hand. He was capable of loving – she knew that. He had just spent too much of his time thinking about Nunnally that he never really focused on other finer things in life. Milly would change that. She would change it and make him consider things. He was her childhood friend after all. And her secret. Well, it was no longer a secret to him, wasn't it?

Before she would not have kissed him. Being with Lelouch had never been an option because he had been exiled and her family had decided that trying to bring him into the fold of the Imperial family would only lead to their end. She had resolved to do what was needed of her family. But things had changed. She could do as she liked. There was nothing standing in the way. Perhaps the emperor would. Yet, it was no trouble trying wasn't it? Nothing was guaranteed. She was taking a chance. And she hoped that things would eventually work out.

The moment she stepped into the room, she found both Rivalz and Shirley staring at her. The atmosphere was tense. She had known that she was going to meet this situation. She had known. But there was just no avoiding it. Milly smiled at her friends before looking around. "Nina not here?" She asked calmly, playing ignorant to the mood.

The awkward shy girl wasn't by her computer. It was rather unusual for her to be late or absent. She didn't take part in many things but she would still be around, staring at her computer working on her science things. Something must have come up her to be absent.

"Is it true, Milly?" Shirley demanded from the President with a look on her face.

Milly paused and folded her hands together before asking. They both had newspapers on them but she hadn't read anything. "What?"

Shirley stood up from where she sat and hit Milly with the newspaper. The Blonde took it and looked it. Her smile disappeared and turned into a frown as she read the words written. It was nothing but slander. They had referenced her previous attempts to find her husband. They said her family had preyed on Lelouch. They said the Ashford family had taken Lelouch in simply because they wanted to return to their noble status. Had she even forced Lelouch to go with her? The vultures seemed to think that she had done so. It was all in the name of the Ashford family and nothing to do with Lelouch.

"Well this is harsher than I had anticipated," Milly said. "I assume students are already gathering up and ready to demand answers from me.." she said in a quiet tone.

"Well, is it true?" Shirley demanded.

"Of course not," Milly said. "Lelouch just asked me to be his date last night because the event had been on short notice. You know me better than this, Shirley," she said with a glare, tone stern. It caused Shirley to flinch.

"Well you did know that he was a prince," Shirley said. "I don't know, Milly…" she shook her head. "You have always been close to him. I always thought it was because it is only because you have known each other the longest."

"Milly…" Rivalz started calmly. "Do you like him?"

Milly stared at the blue haired boy for a moment before shaking her head. He has always liked her but she could not respond to those feelings. It was a rather complex situation they had here. "I'm not going justify this with an answer. Between me and this, who do you trust?"

"You of course," Rivalz was quick to say.

"Good," Milly said smiling brightly. "We have to figure a way to handle the situation before it gets dangerous. I am sure we will be at siege until this gets solved," she said. Her phone rang. She looked at it. It was her grandfather. "My grandfather is calling, I'll be back. In the meantime, don't leave. For your own safety."

As she went outside, Milly hurried towards her grandfather with a deep frown on her lips. She hadn't expected the news to be so bad. Lelouch had no doubt heard something about this. He always read the news. Why hadn't he said something about it.

She looked at her phone and dialed his number. It rang once before he answered. "Milly, I assume you have already seen the news," his voice was oddly quiet and calm.

"Yes," Milly said. "How can you be calm now? My name and honor has been ruined!"

"I will solve it, Milly," Lelouch said in a calm tone. "You will get an apology… I don't need to tell you to keep strong. But I will handle everything. Just don't say anything."

"Fine," Milly said. But before she could say anything, Lelouch had already hung up on her. Some things never change, she mused staring at the phone.

When she arrived at her grandfather's office, she received a stern look. "I had to find out from reports that you were escorting Lelouch last night. And now when I wake up, there is this. You want to tell me what is going on, Milly?"

Milly released a long breath before sitting down. "Lelouch asked me and I agreed. After our last conversation about him, I didn't want you to try to force things…"

"Just so you know, we managed to work out things without including you," Ruben said.

"I know… he told me," Milly said.

"Still, this is a big problem. Denying it will only make it worse and we will be getting a lot of heat from Mainland. I'm sure if nothing is done, the Imperial Family will be forced to denounce us," Ruben said. "If that happens, it will be over for us, Milly. We will be ruined forever."

 **Moments Earlier**

Lelouch put his phone away and turned to Nina with a smile on his lips. "Sorry about that," he said. "That was Milly. I'm sure there will be hell at Ashford Academy and she will be forced into hiding," he said.

Nina couldn't say anything. She was nervous. Months ago, this was just another lazy genius who had no interest in school work because it was all easy for him and apparently didn't teach him anything. Then again, in terms of her research, school work wasn't all that helpful. She depended on her own reasoning to solve things. Now, she was sitting in the limousine of the Eleventh Prince, not just Lelouch but a Britannian prince. This didn't happen often.

"There is nothing to fear, Nina," Lelouch said in a soothing tone.

She looked at him for a moment before nodding. "Um, y-your Highness, what can I help you with," she asked.

"Just Lelouch is fine," Lelouch said. "I will get straight to it; I know of your talents and I want to give you the resources to explore and use those talents," he said.

Nina's ears perked up upon hearing those words. She was willing to speak and she spoke. Lelouch told her what he needed to say and promised to make all resources available. Of course, she would have to keep the work a secret from everyone. She seemed happy to do so.

Once that was done, she was dropped off and Lelouch put on a satisfied look on his face. "That was about the last piece of the puzzle," he said.

"That went easier than expected," Villetta said.

"It was never going to be difficult. These kinds of people all want to put their theories into practice. Some of them have a conscious to be wary about what their creations can do and some don't. But give them the tools to work, and they will work without any problem," Lelouch said calmly. "Well, Nina is a good girl. She will be productive."

"That makes it is easy to see why Prince Schneizel appears to have a handful of people working for him," Jeremiah said.

"Well, he does have the money to throw around," Lelouch said with a frown. "If you are in a position like that of my brother, you can ask for money from friends and they will give you. We don't have to focus on that for now. We have our own issues to deal with," he said.

"Like the articles this morning?" Villetta asked with a raised eye brow.

Thinking of this, Lelouch had thought things would be bad but he hadn't thought it would be to this point. He blamed Clovis for this. He was certainly going to get a call from both Cornelia and Schneizel. It would be a relief if the emperor doesn't say anything. But Pendragon was surely going to have a field day and the imperial court would be making noises. Naturally, no one was going to demand anything from the emperor. They would just take over the issue to themselves. But Lelouch would not. He would show these people that he wasn't a push over.

"There is that," Lelouch said.

"Who could have written such an article? Surely they have an ulterior motive," Jeremiah said with contempt. "If you give the order, I can hunt down the person who wrote and it make him air a live feed of an apology before disposing of him."

Lelouch seemed to consider this. "That could work," he said.

Villetta blinked. She would expect this from Jeremiah but not Lelouch. She shook her head. Well, he was a member of the Imperial family all right. "Wouldn't that be extreme?" Villetta asked. "Can't you just set the record straight?"

"By denying it?" Lelouch asked. "I will not do such a thing. Even if asked, I refuse to indulge scandalous rumors," he said in a firm tone. "But we will do something about this. I already have a plan."

Villetta realized, Lelouch seemed to enjoy leaving them in suspense. He would say things and stop just so to leave them curious and asking for more. "What plan?"

"Clovis will surely not allow this to continue. He will issue his own statement of denial and the person who wrote the article will be barred from going anywhere near him," Lelouch said calmly. "Jeremiah, you will find this person and present the 'truth' to him. Also make sure he writes an apology in big bold letters to Milly and the Ashford Family without mentioning our names."

Jeremiah grinned. "Gladly, your Highness."

"Oh get name of the person who provided such a story. We must sort this out before we leave for homeland," Lelouch said. "But after my last conversation with Schneizel, I don't think that will happen."

"You think someone in the upper class would have done this?"

"Naturally," Lelouch said with a nod. "It does appear that we have another donor who will sponsor some of our projects." He said with a smile. "That should be enough payment for suggesting that an Imperial Prince is nothing but a puppet of the Ashford family and insulting the Emperor, yes?"

Villetta couldn't help but smile. This was a little vicious. Well, she could see why he hadn't thrown a fit like Prince Clovis when he saw the news. Villetta was now certain she was going to enjoy working for him.

"The people in Pendragon will have plenty to say about this," Jeremiah said. "Can we work out this now?"

Lelouch nodded. "I will be returning to the Viceroy Palace to conclude a few things. I won't need you while there."

"I will go with him," Villetta said. "I'm afraid he needs someone to restrain him to ensure he doesn't overdo things."

The eleventh prince smiled. "Well, we don't want things to get worse than this, do we? But I'm sure Jeremiah will know how to handle himself," he said without looking at the man. "This does remind me; we need a media correspondence who will be our ear and warn us about such things. We do need some good publicity out there," he said.

"We will try," Villetta said.

"Wait," Lelouch said. This move was something that he would do but he needed to think both like him and Schneizel. "Once you have the name of the person behind the article, come back quickly. And return with contacts of media houses with an eye for gossip."

 **Viceroy's Palace**

Clovis was sitting on his throne, glaring at nothing in particular. It was apparent that he was in a foul mood. Lelouch had quickly excused himself in the morning to avoid dealing with this situation when it was still troublesome.

Upon taking note of his presence, Clovis stood up and rushed towards him. "Oh, brother," he said sadly. "This must have been hard on you. To have such things written about you…" he shook his head.

"I hardly care about what people say about me," Lelouch said with a shrug of his shoulders. "You look like someone has stolen your art though."

"Are you kidding me?" Clovis looked bewildered at Lelouch's indifference. "This is a PR disaster. Only Schneizel can come out unscathed from this," he said a bit dramatically.

"Well, our brother could take a swim in a pit of hell flames and walk out of it without a burn," Lelouch said. "That is just about how well he manages to handle the situation."

Clovis nodded in agreement. "I have scheduled some interviews for both of us with some media houses to reject these claims," he said.

Lelouch had already expected this from his brother. But he wasn't going to do a dramatic dance before the press. Not when he had to reject some rumors. "You can cancel them, Clovis. I will handle this my way," he said in a stern tone.

"Listen to me, Lelouch. You don't know the press like I do. I have been playing them for years now and I know many people who will write a good story about you. Even it is the truth, they can spin it," Clovis said.

"I have watched many of your speeches, Clovis," Lelouch said with a smile – a bit amused thinking of how dramatic his brother was and he was very good at it. Lelouch could at least give him that much. "You don't think it is the truth, do you?"

"Of course not," Clovis said with a shake of his head. "Nobody forces you to do anything. Besides, Milly seemed to genuinely like you. Of course, I don't recommend liking her. But the bottom line here is that it doesn't matter if it is the truth or not. The fact is it is out there and we must have a way to deal with it."

"And I said I have a way," Lelouch said.

"Well? Tell me your big idea, brother? If you hadn't even brought that girl and allowed me to pick your date, we wouldn't be having this scandal," Clovis said loudly. "Schneizel is going to kill me!"

"So this was yours and Schneizel's plan," Lelouch said. "I should have known. You already knew I was coming before I even left homeland because Schneizel had told you." He accused.

"That isn't the important matter here," Clovis said. "How do you plan on solving this?"

"I have Jeremiah working on it," Lelouch said. "But have no fears, this will be solved and someone will get disgraced for plotting this. We cannot have people contributing to such slander when I am making my debut to the world stage, now can we? This article reduces me to nothing more than a puppet of the Ashfords. And I resent it." He said with a smirk.

Clovis stared at Lelouch for a moment before shaking his head. "Are you sure you will be able to handle this?"

"If it doesn't go away, we can do it your way," Lelouch said.

"Deal," Clovis was quick to say. "Brother, what do you say to working with me? You have always been good with strategies, I could use you here. You be in charge of military within the Area."

"I thought we already had this discussion, Clovis," Lelouch said with a slight shake of his head.

"I wasn't satisfied with your answer. I have a terrorist problem here and could use your help getting rid of them. You know, the fact that I have been unable to destroy all terrorist groups is a stain on my name and people laugh at me whenever I go back home," Clovis said with a troubled look on his face.

"I don't have a say on that and besides, I am waiting to be deployed for war," Lelouch said.

"That's unattractive," Clovis said. "We already have Cornelia for that. I could speak to father and he could assign you here. I'm sure Schneizel wouldn't mind working things out as well."

Lelouch was not going to become the tool for Clovis. He would not become Clovis' subordinate. Besides, this dream was small. Clovis has no big ambitions. The only reason Schneizel would even entertain the idea of making him the military general of this area would be to give him that battle experience but compared to the grand plans the man had for him, this was small. "Not happening, Clovis. At least not now."

"So there is a chance?"

"Of course," Lelouch said with a smile. "Now, don't call me for an interview. You can do an interview yourself but don't quote me or Milly. I will handle the issue the way I see fit…" he said turning away from Clovis.

"I am putting my plans on stand-by. I have already written both our speeches." Clovis said with a smile.

"Have some faith in me, brother," Lelouch said.

"I keep saying that to Schneizel," Clovis said with a frown on his lips. "Regardless of what I do, it will never be enough to our brother."

Lelouch just shook his head; he had his personal problems with Schneizel, he wasn't going to get into this one. "Tell you what; if you want to do an interview, you can add some things, not from me but from what you know. If you do this for me, our brother will start trusting you a bit and he won't be questioning you about this matter. Who knows, maybe I might one day decide to help you with your terrorist problem."

"Interesting," Clovis said. "I'm listening."

"Do your interview but don't talk about the articles. Talk about what you have been doing in this area, the honorary Britannian system and yet still have terrorists who want to destroy all that. Make sure that someone asks if you want to comment on the articles. When they do ask, just laugh it off and tell them that 'Lelouch and Milly have been friends since they were young. You must know that the Ashfords and the vi Britannia were very close. I wouldn't be surprised if empress Marianne had promised my brother to them as a thank you for their loyalty, support and to continue with the bond they shared for generations to come.' Stop there, and don't entertain any questions."

Clovis looked thoughtful for a moment; he was picturing himself playing that role. Oh yes, he could play it effectively without any problem. He thought about the good and the bad for a moment before fixing his brother a stare. "Why even talk about the marriage?"

"Because brother, even if we deny everything and people believe you, it doesn't change that the subject has already been thrown out there. The news will still linger within people's minds. Instead of focusing on the Ashfords using me, people will now focus on how they had been my mother's supporters. How they had been close to my family. Forget about how they were stripped of everything after my mother's death. It would only be natural to think with how close they were, the two families would have gone into such an arrangement and young Milly and Lelouch were introduced at a young age for this purpose. This just helps twist things a little. Of course, people will think about how the Ashfords were unfairly targeted after the death of my mother. People start thinking about her death as well and start throwing up possibilities as to what might have happened. And if the terrorists have been arrested."

"This is risky, Lelouch."

"Do you want my help?"

"Fine," Clovis said, he smiled though. "You've always been the smarter one between us. Well, you thought of this, I will go prepare for my performance. I have to be convincing before the media."

 **Later**

Clovis had not wasted time holding a live briefing that interrupted the normal scheduling. He wanted everyone to watch. The whole of Area 11 to see his performance. Britannia would be watching as well. How would Pendragon even react to this? Lelouch hadn't helped but laugh with madness as Clovis aired his speech and grievances that Empress Marianne's loyal supporters would be smeared like this. He had shed a tear, that saying this reminds him of her death before returning to the main subject – his achievements and terrorists. He had even gone as far as to claim because of the reminder of what happened to Aries Villa, he would crush the terrorist to remove all threats to his nation, to the people, and to ensure that what happened in the past did not happen again.

It was brilliant. Lelouch applauded Clovis' performance. This was what he wanted. Britannia would be forced to remember what happened to his mother. They would ask if the terrorists claimed to have assassinated his mother had been arrested or not. Lelouch smirked at this. He had opened the conversation. Even Charles would have to deal with it. But most of all, he hadn't said a word about it but stayed in the background, his brother doing the talking. With Clovis, you could say it had been his own thoughts, not the words that vi Britannia put into his mouth.

Lelouch looked up as both Jeremiah and Villetta walked towards him. He greeted them with a smile. "How was Clovis' performance?"

"Beautiful, your Highness," Jeremiah said. "Was it your doing?"

Lelouch smiled. "Clovis has always been like that. Well, he is an artist. And he likes to put things on display. I did convince him to say a couple of things," he said in a proud tone. "How did things go at your end?"

"Without any problems," Villetta said. "There were seven different media houses who'd run the story. And the source was one person. The other media houses didn't want to reveal their sources but we got through to one of their editors who revealed and cornered the Viscount behind it."

"Excellent," Lelouch said with a clap of his hands. "After Clovis' performance, this will do. An apology from media houses for running false story after they'd been fed it by an unknown source. The source who gave them the info was a man with a grudge against vi Britannia and the Ashfords."

 **End of chapter**

 **Although I have said that Lelouch will play military, there will be plenty of politics involved. Perhaps this might make the story a little longer, but I don't have a problem against that. The only worrying cause would be whether I will be able to write or not. But for the moment, I had no such concerns.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage**


	8. Chapter 8

"Brother, is it true?" Nunnally asked, her closed eyelids staring at the screen in front of her. Milly was standing just beside her along with Sayako. "Sayako told me that you are getting married to Milly…"

Lelouch had decided against going to Ashford Academy. Even though Clovis had played his part and this thing would likely disappear, he didn't want to be seen around the academy to invoke the rumors once more. It was a pain. He was planning to leave Area 11 before the day ends since he had already concluded his business. "It is just rumors, Nunnally. It was started because I took Milly to a party Clovis was hosting."

"Oh," Nunnally mouthed, and turned her head slightly. "Well, I think you are not that old but if you were marrying Milly, I would have been happy for you."

"Nunnally, you don't love your brother do you? You know Milly would make wear aprons and make my life miserable," Lelouch said with a stare, while casting a side glance towards Milly. The blonde just smiled innocently but didn't say anything.

Nunnally giggled softly at the thought. "But brother, you already to wear an apron when you cook," she said calmly. "Sayako told me…" she added with a smile.

Lelouch felt like hitting himself. He really needed to get a handle of his household activities. Well, as long as it had been for his sister, it hadn't mattered. "I did that for you, Nunnally." He said. "But there is no truth to the rumors," he added in a firm tone.

Nunnally nodded. "When do you leave?"

"Today," Lelouch said with a sad smile on his lips. "I will come back whenever I have time, Nunnally and I will try to come and see you before I depart," he said.

Nunnally brightened up slightly. "I will be waiting for you, brother," she said. She said a couple of things before Sayako wheeled her out of the room.

Lelouch glared at Milly once Nunnally left the room. "Could you not have corrected things with her?" he said.

"I could have," Milly said with a nod. She then smiled. "But your sister looked happy absorbing the news and I wanted to see the look on your face when you tried to explain things to your sweet innocent little sister."

Lelouch shook his head. Milly would always be Milly. It was troublesome but he should really get used to this kind of thing from his childhood friend. She was something else. But if she was somehow, she wouldn't be Milly, would she? He just had to get used to her antics. It was important these days since it does seem that he was spending much time talking to her than he had thought when he was on a plane heading to Pendragon.

"Have things calmed down on your side?" Lelouch asked calmly.

"A bit yeah," Milly said with a nod. "What was that about a marriage agreement between our families? You know, I have people asking me if there was any agreement," she said.

Lelouch shrugged carelessly. "If there was an agreement, would your family have tried to set you up with someone else?" He asked.

"When people want to ignore things that don't fit their narrative, they will ignore even facts," Milly said in a stern tone. "Well, I can't complain much. Things will eventually return to normal and I can live happily. It is just good that no one got a snap of me kissing you…" she said with a wide smile.

Lelouch paled at the thought. It would have been disastrous. "Tell me, Milly, there is no image, right?"

Milly smiled innocently, "Who knows? If it does exist, let us hope that it doesn't appear anywhere," she said.

Lelouch stared at Milly for a long minute but before he could say anything, another call came for him. "If you do anything, you will regret it, Milly. We will talk some other day, I have a call from a royal line," he cut off the line without waiting for Milly to respond.

Schneizel was on the side of the screen. The Prime Minister smiled when he saw a chess board in front of Lelouch. It was apparent that his younger brother had been working hard in Clovis' backyard. It was unlikely that Clovis would see anything. But he has known that Lelouch hadn't gone to that side just to see Nunnally and meet Lloyd. There were bigger plans. He didn't know what, but perhaps it had something to do with the Ashfords and the nobles residing in Area 11. It was likely that his younger brother was familiar with them because of his habits.

"Schneizel," Lelouch started in a calm tone. "I was wondering when you would call," he said.

The second prince's smile remained in place as he responded. "Well, I have to check up on you given the signals I have been receiving in Pendragon," he said.

Lelouch raised an eye brow. He didn't think that the man would still be in homeland considering the dangers of the EU. "What signals?"

"Well, the Ashfords aren't really anyone's favorites. I'm sure the upper class is thinking they wouldn't have to deal with them. Even though things have been handled, some people are cautious about what would happen if they were to return to the fold," Schneizel said.

"No doubt they would have many enemies," Lelouch said. Many of the families had pushed for them to be expelled and had cheered when they were stripped on the status. They had been supporters of Empress Marianne. She was gone, they had to disappear with her. They had sided with the wrong side and they lost. But he had made a come back, and they could make a come back, they would certainly have many in their hit list.

"So would you," Schneizel said.

"I already have enemies," Lelouch said with a wave of his right hand. "Perhaps more so than I would have wanted but I am in this situation and have to deal with it."

And he would deal with it. There was just no way around it. He could not forget the past and he would not. Perhaps his mistake had been when he marched towards the emperor's throne demanding answers. A tantrum of a naïve child who thought he could use his status as a prince to get the emperor to move. But the cold bastard hadn't indulged him. He had banished him and then used him as a political hostage to get Japan to think that Britannia would not invade, as long as the two of the emperor's children were there. They had been naïve –Just as he was.

"I am here to help if you need it," Schneizel said. "I must congratulate you on how you solved the matters. It has achieved its intended consequence," the Second Prince said.

"That was all Clovis," Lelouch was quick to say.

The Prime Minister smiled. "You have never been modest, brother. That aside, I know Clovis very well. You wrote the script and he played it to perfection. I hadn't thought you would handle it in that way. But it works to your advantage," he said. "Are you sure you want to reopen the past, Lelouch?"

"Let them think about it," Lelouch said with a shrug. "I have other things to focus on. If they are busy with this, I get to move around smoothly. That aside, I do think when my name means something the people who scorned me will be trying to kiss the very ground I walk?"

"Perhaps," Schneizel said. "Well, as long as you have things under control, I won't interfere. Besides, it will be good to see how you handle yourself under pressure. However, I do hope that you know what you are doing. Because if not, this will become a dangerous road for you."

Lelouch nodded. He knew. He would possibly have to deal with the Emperor about this. The man was unlikely to be pleased with him. But did Lelouch care? Of course not. If Charles was seething, Lelouch was laughing like a mad man. "I know," he said.

"As long as you know," Schneizel said. "I called you because you are being deployed."

Lelouch stared at his brother for a long minute. It was finally happening. He was going into war. He was going to battle, to risk his life and put forth the agenda of Britannia for world domination. "Couldn't you have started with that?"

"We wouldn't have had the conversation we just had," Schneizel said calmly. "You are going to Europe. I didn't want an all out war with them but it can't be avoided anymore. As you know, the EU is the largest of the three great nations in terms of territory. We are going to break that dominance."

"The EU likes to sell itself as better than Britannia but it is no better. The elevens who fled Area 11 and went to the EU are racially discriminated against and within this the EU, they are suffering. They would have had much better lives had they not fled," Lelouch said with a shake of his head.

"It has also seen its fair share of annexation and colonization," Schneizel said. "We are not the ones to say this but it is the truth. In any case, I have been working with some member states and they have chosen to surrender than fight Britannia. One of these nations is Portugal. But we have not made their position formal because they are close to Spain."

"Which is close to France, where the Headquarters of the EU are," Lelouch finished calmly.

Schneizel nodded. "We want to take over northern Africa to create a space for our military to operate. But as things stand, we cannot send our army into Africa because it would be surrounded quickly by forces from Spain. If we do that mistake, we suffer heavy losses."

"Morale crushing and I'm sure our father would not be pleased with whoever made such a strategic blunder," Lelouch said. "What is you plan?"

"What would you do?"

"Occupy both Portugal while mounting a challenge in the borders of Spain and send a large naval army towards northern Africa. They will act to stop any forces from Africa trying to get to Europe. But you'd have to keep a large fleet in the ocean, in case support is required," Lelouch explained after some thought. "I assume that is what you have thought."

"Yes," Schneizel said with a nod.

"Strategically, it will matter who you place in charge of the forces in Africa, Portugal and the Ocean…" Lelouch said in thought.

"This is where you come in," Schneizel said. "You will be in Spain and Cornelia will be in Africa. I will stay close in the ocean to offer oversight and strategic support," he said.

Lelouch looked thoughtful for a moment. Schneizel would have ordinarily sent someone to Portugal with instructions. The man must have made the decision in order to get him some battle experience and because he would be close, there was less chance of any catastrophic blunder that would cost Britannia greatly.

"The EU will try to crush me because of we enter Spain, we are close to France," Lelouch said. "It isn't going to be an easy battle. I was expecting something a little smaller."

"This just how much a trust you, Lelouch," Schneizel said with smile. "You don't have to break into Spain. Well, if you succeed, it will be a good thing for us. Your role is just to keep the EU occupied long enough while Cornelia establishes a stronghold in northern Africa. Once she is done, you could pull out and we will begin our campaign in Africa."

"In Europe, where will the real attack be?" Lelouch asked in a curious tone. "The occupation of Portugal and Northern Africa is just a method directed to make the EU focus its forces in Spain and France."

Schneizel only smiled. "Within the North side of the Atlantic Ocean, there is in island. I will be heading there shortly. I will have the coordinates sent to you and we will meet there," Schneizel said.

Lelouch nodded. "We will arrive early morning tomorrow," Lelouch said.

"Then I'll see you tomorrow, brother," Schneizel said before cutting off the line.

Lelouch stared into the empty space ahead of him for a long minute before shaking his head. He had been flung straight into chaos. Schneizel wasn't wasting time. But Lelouch hoped that his elder would not try to tell him how run his battles. If it was so, Lelouch would rather spend time in Aries Villa than being a puppet for Schneizel. If he was going out, he would need to be the boss and the one in charge, not taking orders on how to position his men from the Prime Minister. Lelouch hoped the man would get this through his head.

And there was Cornelia to think about. She was certainly going to throw a fit when she learns that he is going to be thrown into the front door of the EU. But there was nothing she could do about it. Cornelia was a military person, and she would follow orders given to her. Well, unless those orders went against her love for her dear sibling. So long as Euphemia was safe, Cornelia would always be a loyal military dog. But that was more or less the same for him, wasn't it? He was different because he had ambition but if they pressed on Nunnally, he would not have a choice but to toy in line.

Lelouch picked up his phone and called Jeremiah and Villetta. They would need to return quickly so that they could make preparations for their trip to Europe. It took about an hour for the two to return and then they did, Lelouch didn't waste time getting into the matter at hand.

"We are going to Europe," Lelouch said in a serious tone. "I just spoke to Schneizel, we are going to be deployed in the border between Spain and Portugal," he said.

"But that is close to the heart of the EU," Villetta said.

Lelouch nodded. "We have to go. Britannia can't move all its forces for the EU. We still have the Chinese Federation to consider. If we leave even the areas we have conquered, terrorist groups could take advantage of the situation. This is why we are being cautious. Well, I guess only Schneizel and I could pull this off. I believe our assignment is going to need a miracle," he said smiling wildly.

"Yet, you seem very excited," Jeremiah said. "How long are we going to be gone for?"

Lelouch shook his head. "It depends on how long Cornelia finishes up things on her side," he said. well, considering that she would be fighting while thinking about him, she was certainly going to be quick and on a rampage to ensure that she finishes quickly to come to his aide or so that he could be relieved of his duty. "If you are religious, say your prayers tonight, we are going to be very busy."

 **The Following Day**

Villetta glanced at the sides of Lelouch; she was sitting just next to him, with Jeremiah on the other side. He was dead asleep, it was still early morning and they were flying over the ocean. She glanced at Jeremiah, he was wide awake. Well, it was to be accepted. With how he viewed Lelouch, it was,

"Can't sleep?" Villetta said to Jeremiah. She knew the answer to the question though.

"I can't sleep while his Highness is sleeping in a situation like this," Jeremiah said calmly. He wasn't even feeling sleepy. He was used to this kind of situations.

"What do you think is going to happen?" Villetta asked. "It is just the three of us and the pilots. As far as I'm concerned, these are the same pilots who always fly his Highness," she said.

"We are flying above the sea, in a civilian craft. This is away from home. If a military aircraft sees us and shoots a missile towards us, we are dead," Jeremiah said.

"You are being paranoid and cynical," Villetta said in a flat tone. Truly, they were going to join other Britannian forces and surely, the EU would not want to attack Lelouch to risk an all-out war. Then again, an attack could come from behind, from their homeland. That was where the dangerous enemies were coming from – the thought made Villetta frown. She was truly living in a dangerous world.

"I'm just being safe," Jeremiah said with a shrug of his shoulders. "You should get some rest though," he said.

Villetta looked thoughtful for a moment before shaking her head. They were likely going to rest before they enter land and head into battlefield. There was surely going to be rest. "I'll rest when we land," she said. "But you do know that when we enter battlefield, your duty won't be to protect him but to follow his orders in a raging battlefield, yes?"

Jeremiah frowned deeply. He knew that. He had been thinking about it and it was difficult to accept. But there was no questioning that things would work out in this way. Lelouch would not want him watching his back all the time when he has to be fighting the enemy. They had a war to win. And if he offered a divided attention to the efforts, it would affect the platoon's performance and that would negatively impact Lelouch's reputation. In this time, there was no room for failure or lapses. It would be the end for all of them.

"I know that," he said before falling silent once more.

"Then get some sleep, Jeremiah," Lelouch suddenly said in stern tone. "Once we enter land, we will be resting at a place where the enemy can attack us at any time. We won't be sleeping like we are at home. We don't even know how long this will last and our game will be simply to stop EU forces from taking Portugal," the Eleventh Prince said. "This is an order, Jeremiah. The same goes for you, Villetta." After saying those words, Lelouch closed his eyes, going back to sleep. He then opened one eye bit narrowly, "Both of you do understand what an order is, yes?"

"Yes, my Lord."

"Then get some sleep."

Two Hours Later

Lelouch looked around him for a moment and marveled at what Britannia had built here. This was a military alright. The Island had been turned into a military base that had everything. He could see runaways, planes and there were massive Britannia's war ships coming along the way. They had yet to arrive in the island but he assumed they were coming here, armed with knightmare frames. How had Britannia built this without the EU knowing about it? Some Intelligence services had been put into work. But obviously, it hadn't taken a single year to build this. This had to be a project that was done slowly with the EU not even knowing about it. Perhaps it had to do with how Portugal fell into the side of Britannia.

He hoped that Cornelia had yet to arrive and he would be able to leave without seeing her. He could pretend to listen if she calls him via the royal line. Sighing deeply about his nagging elder sister, Lelouch started to walk towards the largest building within the military base. As he walked, he saw Schneizel's plane.

It didn't take long before they were welcomed by a uniformed soldier. The man led them straight towards the command center. Not long ago, Lelouch had been living casually, the only command center meetings he attended had been for the student council. He hadn't even thought he would be in this position once more. Standing tall above commoners and Britannia's nobility as the Eleventh Prince. But the Emperor called and things changed drastically.

The command center was full of activities. Lelouch had no doubt the EU was scrambling for forces while military generals were arguing about which way was best to engage Britannia forces that looked ready to strike Northern Africa. It was war alright. That part was within the EU territory and maybe it didn't hold much worth, but they would not willingly allow Britannia to take it.

Even with people around, Schneizel had prepared a chessboard. A small movable chair had been prepared for him: it was going to be a match in front of other military men. It was no doubt purposeful. Everyone knew of Schneizel's prowess in a game of chess. It was a move designed to get people to acknowledge his prowess with strategy and the ability to stand toe to toe with the man who many claimed not have an equal within the Emperor's children.

"This feels like an ambush," Lelouch said as he settled on a chair, just across Schneizel. Jeremiah and Villetta were standing behind him. The eyes of the people around turned towards them. When did you get the chance to see two royal Princes playing a game of chess?

"We are going to war, chances are you will be ambushed," Schneizel said calmly.

There would be no play in their words, not because there were people around. Schneizel wouldn't even take it easy on him. The man wasn't that charitable. Besides, a false victory would only undermine both of them. "You don't expect one within your camp unless there is a traitor," Lelouch said calmly, eyes staring at the pieces ahead of him.

"Well, there have been such cases before," Schneizel said. "It's not something you see in Britannian forces though."

"No one would want to make an enemy of Britannia," Lelouch said. "Since I don't see her here, I assume our sister has yet to arrive," he said.

"She took planned detour to the shores of Morocco, but she will come here," Schneizel said. He then smiled. "Afraid to see her?"

Lelouch grunted but did not respond as he picked up a pawn. He thought for a moment before putting it down. "You know how she is going to react," he said.

"It will be good for amusement," Schneizel said.

Lelouch snorted; for the soldiers around them perhaps. Lelouch didn't want to see Cornelia giving him a lecture in front of people who would be his subordinates. Cornelia would go that far if she was high on emotions. "Cornelia aside, how were you able to build this without the EU knowing. I assume they would have tried to level this place the moment they realized something was up."

"It was built pieces by pieces under the banner of Portugal," Schneizel said. "Without their cooperation, we would not have moved without the EU making things difficult for us."

Lelouch nodded. It was apparent that even though Schneizel had been trying to avoid war with the EU he had been taking steps to ensure that if a war does happen, Britannia was ready. Not just to defend itself but to conquer the EU. It would take some time for the EU to fully be under Britannia, but it wasn't impossible. In the near future, Britannia could unite the world under one banner. Perhaps then the world would become a gentle place. But as things stood, there would be continuous wars until one side won.

"But surely they have taken of things now and know of Portugal's position," Lelouch said in thought, his eyes never leaving the chessboard. It was never easy. He was attacking to draw. Victory was not necessary at this point. On a personal note, it wouldn't be a bad thing if he actually won. He did play with that in mind.

"They have… as we speak, the EU council has gathered in Paris," Schneizel said. "They are discussing Northern Africa since that is where we have placed Cornelia and they know about it. Unless leaks, they shouldn't know of Britannia's forces already within Portugal."

So the devil had already moved into EU territory. This was how he had managed to atop the EU from making movements towards Portugal. "But now they will make a move. Especially with Britannia's forces close by."

"Indeed," Schneizel said. His eyes concentrated on the game for a moment as he thought of his next move. Lelouch was always difficult. It was always hard to face him. He would certainly make a worthy opponent in battle. "They are already moving and will try to take over Portugal to make sure we don't have a piece of land in Europe. But we are going to move. We will defend Portugal at its borders."

"That is a tall order," Lelouch said in deep thought. "Forces from Spain and France will be moving towards the border between the former and Portugal. We don't have enough numbers to stall," he said.

"I still expect you to stop them from regaining Portugal…"

"Then I assume there is a plan to ensure that their forces are not focused in Spain only," Lelouch said. "The main focus on Africa but if the little forces within Portugal are stretched and crushed, it is going to be a major loss and will empower the EU to make bolder movements," he said.

"There will be a strike in Russia," Schneizel said without going into detail. "It will keep them from focusing their forces in one place. If anything, it will look like we have them surrounded, but we don't have the forces to actually surround them. That is why we have Cornelia within Morocco. Once Morocco is taken, we will create a stronghold there and depending on things, we might leave Portugal as well. But if things are good, we will remain there."

"When do you do ifs?"

Schneizel smiled but did not change his statement. "There will be three units along the border. A division of Portuguese forces will be at the northern border and your Platoon will be stationed at the heart of the border. Britannia's forces coming from mainland will move the Southern border to stop any advancement."

"So you do plan on taking over Madrid," Lelouch said with a glance at his brother. "Once Cornelia is done, you'll either move to Madrid or go through Russia. The end game is to make the EU surrender…"

"Hopefully they will," Schneizel said. "You'll only get about 90 knightmare frames. They are in top condition. We don't have much here, but more are on the way. For now, you'll make to make do with them. But if you run into trouble, reinforcements will come from north."

Lelouch thought deeply. There will probably be more men than machines. He was considerably not going to have many of them enter battlefield because their base of operations would need to be guarded at all times. And they they would surely be fighting bigger enemies that what they had. "Well, that is a lot more than what I had anticipated." Lelouch said before moving his queen.

Schneizel did not respond. He stared at the board, looking at where he had gone wrong. He concluded with that move, the game was going to end in a draw. It wasn't that he had done anything wrong, Lelouch was just a worthy opponent. He smiled and leaned back to his chair.

"We have prepared a place for you but you leave soon enough. The EU forces have already begun to move. The leaders of the squads under your Platoon are already in position." Schneizel said.

"Then we will leave once we rest a bit," Lelouch said as he stood up.

Schneizel called someone to show Lelouch and his people to their place of rest.

Lelouch smiled when he looked at the papers prepared for him. It was just maps and a couple of information he would need. At least Schneizel wasn't leaving him hanging. Lelouch wasn't going to stay longer her, lest Cornelia corners him. Since she hasn't called, it was likely that Schneizel had yet to tell her anything. Well, she was certainly going to throw a fit and a lot more reason to avoid seeing her. Lelouch was certain with how his elder sister treated Euphie, no matter what he did; she would most likely never stop seeing him as a child, despite having seen past those days when Britannia decided to invade Japan.

He threw himself on the couch before staring at the reports. He didn't touch anything but just stared, lost in thought. He then lifted his head and faced Villetta. "You should use the shower now. I'm certain with the men below us; it is going to be harder to get hot water once things become dangerous."

Perhaps it hadn't yet fully registered to her, but Villetta realized, they were certainly going to be living in the battleground. There would be no long showers, no turning in hot water till you were satisfied. She frowned, thinking that there might be days they would not even have water if the supply was interrupted. This was no vacation. Not the kind of fighting they did in Area 11 with the Purist Faction.

Lelouch would not have to worry about anything though. He was going have imperial kind of arrangement for himself. Even with this place was made for royalty. Villetta didn't waste time in nodding her head before she walked away.

Jeremiah sat across Lelouch and looked at the reports before looking at Lelouch. "I guess this is going to make you a Lieutenant as a post, not a rank," he said.

Lelouch looked thought for a moment before taking a file with his name. "I guess that has been confirmed," he said looking at the report about himself, his military career – which was blank. Well, the blanks would be filled once he was done with this battlefield. "Clovis wants me to become the Field Marshal of Area 11."

"Can he make you?" Jeremiah asked.

"He can request but I assume the emperor wouldn't have a problem with it," Lelouch said. "Though for my brother it is a way to avoid responsibility for anything terrorists do. If I become the General of the Army, dealing with terrorists becomes my problem and I will be the one who has to answer."

"Do you plan on taking it?"

Lelouch shook his head. "Schneizel would only permit it on temporary basis and only if there is nothing for me to do. But if I am not in military, I'm certain he is going to have me attend the meetings he will be holding with other nations. This is a case for other some time. U have no doubt that I am still going to play politics when not in military," he added shaking his head. "For now, we have a major battle to prepare for. You should be ready as well. Once we are done cooling down, we will depart immediately."

"Yes, my Lord."

 **About Five Hours Later**

Cornelia gave Schneizel a stern look. They were in a private setting, having called for a meeting in closed quarters the moment she arrived and was told that Lelouch was not only here but would not be with her. She had made this clear to Schneizel that she wanted to have him under her so that she could monitor him, instruct him and teach him how to behave properly in a war field. There were chances of death in war and she could not simply sit back and allow Schneizel to put him in danger.

"You have a lot of explaining to do, brother." Cornelia said to the Prime Minister who looked his usual self, unlike Lelouch who looked like he wanted to run somewhere and just be by himself.

Schneizel merely smiled. He had expected this to happen. But he didn't want to defend Lelouch. He wanted Lelouch to stand up for himself. It was apparent that with Cornelia, Lelouch could not grow in the same rate he wished. For Cornelia, he was a younger brother she wanted to protect. But Schneizel saw more than that and he wanted his younger brother to be a success. He didn't wish for Cornelia to stand in the way. He believed that if things were handled this way, there would no more future incidents.

"Lelouch is deployed far away from you, Cornelia. Nothing is going to change," Schneizel said.

"I demand change!" Cornelia said forcefully. "I told you that I wanted him to be placed under me so that I can introduce him to the battlefield. A couple of months ago, he wasn't even a prince but just a school boy who spends his time gambling with nobles! He has no experience and already, you have put him in charge of a Platoon?"

"I was thinking that our brother is capable of the job I assigned him," Schneizel paused and looked straight into Cornelia's eyes. "Since when do you question my judgement?"

Cornelia stared. She did trust Schneizel. He has been basically running the empire by himself and he was never wrong. He'd never lost. His judgement was always sound. Still, this was Lelouch. Reason failed and Schneizel's judgment appeared questionable. But who could blame her? Even those under him were going to have some trouble following orders because he had no experience and they would think he was just another Prince who was going to send them to their deaths. Not to mention, Lelouch was a little reckless. She feared he was going to do something daring.

"You have always been right, but I worry," Cornelia said in a subdued tone. "You are sending him right at the doorstep of the EU and they will do everything possible to defend it. They are not going to make things easy and they will most likely target the inexperienced commander."

"I have looked at all possibilities and concluded that Lelouch will manage," Schneizel said calmly. "Besides, I will be right here. And, how long he engages the EU solely depends on you. If you finish quickly, you can save him, sister."

"That means I have to hurry up," Cornelia turned towards Lelouch. "If you do anything stupid, there will be consequences. If you are in trouble, retreat. Don't face a challenge you can't win. If it looks dangerous, it is dangerous. If you can't go far, call me and I will be with you shortly."

Lelouch suppressed the urge to groan; he was certainly just a child in the eyes of his elder sister. It was good to have someone to care for you, but it was a problem when they were Cornelia. How has Euphemia been able to live all these years? When he returns to Aries Villa, they were surely going to have a talk about this. There would be some sympathy. "I will let you know if there is something, Cornelia,"

"Your words, don't give me much confidence that you indeed will," Cornelia said with a frown. "Next time, I expect to be consulted when such decisions I being made, Schneizel. I hold the highest ranking in Britannia's military, I should know when things like this are being made."

"It was an oversight on my part," Schneizel admitted in a quiet tone. "It won't happen again," he said.

"Schneizel," Lelouch said in a firm tone. "I will need about two scraps of knightmare frames that be put together and made operational and a lot of explosives. You can provide that, can you?"

Something was definitely up with that request and the knightmares were going to be used in a big way. He smiled, "There is nothing in this island but the fourth squad in your Platoon has had some exercises. It should have some scraps. If you don't find any, I will make some calls," he said.

Lelouch nodded before standing up. He saluted towards Cornelia. "General, I pray that you don't meet tough challenges that will make our stay in the front lines pro longed than it should," he said.

"And I hope you don't do anything reckless, Lieutenant," Cornelia said in a calm tone. "You jumped rankings," she said.

Schneizel smiled. "He is prince," he said. "And we had to give him a ranking that is appropriate to his current position. Besides, the squad leaders in his platoon have a higher rank than him," the prime minister put out calmly.

Lelouch just shook his head. "We will talk Schneizel. I have a meeting with destiny," he said with a smile on his lips.

Cornelia had to restrain herself from pinning down Lelouch to the grown and tell Schneizel that unless it was Africa, he wasn't going anywhere. She had to let him grow. She had to allow him to do what Schneizel thought he could do. But if he failed or doesn't perform as expected, Cornelia wasn't going to allow Schneizel to put him an any dangerous situations. She was going to ensure that he was by her side until she was satisfied that he could stand on his own.

Once Lelouch was out of the room, Schneizel faced Cornelia. "Now, Cornelia, let us get to strategy," he said. "You need not be concerned with Lelouch. I will be overlooking his battles from here. But your mission is what I am most concerned with."

 **Outside of the command center**

Lelouch breathed a sigh of relief that things hadn't gone as bad as he had thought they would. Perhaps it was because Schneizel had been there. Well, he had known that Schneizel wasn't going to change anything. Battle lines were set and the strategies were already in place. It was just time for the real engagement to begin. Lelouch would not allow anything to get in the way of his victory. He would conquer this crusade.

"Jeremiah, we are going into enemy lines now," he said. "It will be rather dangerous to fly towards the front lines in a civilian aircraft. With how things are at the moment, we could get shot down. The EU already knows we are here and will be watching for any invasion and we really don't want to give away our location."

"If we do that, they could plot night attacks and ambush us," the former Purist Faction leader.

Lelouch nodded. "There is runway prepared for us. We will be welcomed there and taken to our prime location," Lelouch said. "Let us move," he said heading straight towards the plane.

"Yes, my Lord."

Portugal; the sun was already setting. Lelouch was glad they would not be meeting any natives; maybe during the battlefield. It wasn't uncommon for some people within the nation to be against the idea of betraying the EU and allying with Britannia. Schneizel must have shown the leaders of this country that he would destroy it shortly if they didn't surrender. An arms conflict would leave the country in ruins. A willing surrender would leave their nation intact and the battles wouldn't happen where civilians would be caught in the crossfire. A promise Schneizel would keep unless he had to depart for another deal. He doubted it would be the case though. The other nations who have accepted Schneizel's romance would be observing the situation with keen interest and any movement that showed he was untrustworthy; they would break-up with him and return to the EU, armed with whatever they had learned during their time with the Prime Minister.

Lelouch looked around the air base; it looked deserted. Perhaps to make sure that the EU didn't take notice. A line of communication left for channels to be hacked.

"Your Highness," Villetta cautioned Lelouch as a military vehicle made its way towards them along with two knightmare frames escorting it.

"Allies," Lelouch said. "The knightmare frames belong to the EU but they are allies," he said in a calm tone.

"Is it a way to avoid detection?" Jeremiah asked.

"Most likely," Lelouch said. "Everything has to made subtle to avoid the EU making moves to precise locations. They now already know that Portugal is with Britannia and are already moving."

Villetta would not say it but this looked like a suicide mission. They were heading straight into the doors of the enemy. Well, Schneizel would not send his brother into a place to die, would he? She could understand why the Second Princess hadn't looked impressed when she hurled both princes into a private room to talk to them. They did not listen but she was surely voicing her thoughts about Lelouch being placed in such a battle when he had no military experience. Villetta shook her head. Now was not the time have such thoughts. She was already here. Being doubtful wasn't going to change anything. She was here, it was either she was fully set on fighting or she went home.

"It is still surprising that Britannia was still able to move within the EU though," Villetta said.

"The EU is made up of different nations. They can hide things from the other. They are not always on the same page. The Federation was made for survival." Lelouch said.

The military vehicle stopped just in front of them and a man stepped out of passenger seat. The two more armed soldiers stepped and took their positions. The man leading them walked towards them.

"Major Albert Augustus!" The Major saluted Lelouch and his company. "I am the temporary commander of the platoon."

"At ease soldier," Lelouch said in a relaxed tone. He exchanged greetings before giving an order. "Lead the way, Major," he said. He didn't want to linger around the place for too much. Not when he didn't know who was watching.

The Major led them towards the vehicle. Once settled, he introduced both Jeremiah and Villeta to the Major. "If you are in charge and you here, who did you leave in charge of the platoon?" Lelouch asked calmly as the vehicle started moving.

"Major Frederik is in charge of the Platoon, sire," Albert responded a stiffly.

Lelouch went deep into his thoughts for a couple of moments before facing the Major once more. "Is it you and Major Frederik with senior positions in the platoon?"

"Yes sire. I lead the fourth squad and Major Frederik commands the second squad. The third squad was only integrated into the unit a week ago having just arrived from Mainland," Albert reported.

Lelouch would have liked to have both Jeremiah and Villetta in leadership positions. But he could not just go an change things in the bat of an eye. If he was going to demote someone, it would have to be for reasons everyone can see and believe. He didn't want to sow seeds of contempt and jealousy. That would mean that for now, he would have to make both Jeremiah and Albert joint leaders whenever he wasn't around. Villetta would have to be with him whenever he steps out. He did need someone he could trust to watch him. Besides, if Cornelia calls and finds that neither Jeremiah nor Villetta are with him in battle, she was going to throw a fit.

There was much to do and some organization needed but he would handle it. Once he arrives, he would have to deal with the logistics. It was going to be a long night. But he would have to do. He needed to come out of this with victory or else he would return to Pendragon with shame and the nobles would be laughing at him.

"Major Albert," Lelouch started as he left his thoughts. He wanted to speak once more but the road became bumpy.

The major smiled. "I forgot to mention this, but the road will be a bit bumpy," he said.

Lelouch stared at the man for a moment before shaking his head. "How long?"

"About an hour," Albert said.

Lelouch nodded. "Any more surprises I should know?"

"The men have already been told that you are coming. I had to do a little research to tell them what kind of person their commander was going to be. But I couldn't find much," Albert said. "But they know you are coming and I have heard them discussing some things about you. Most of them are commoners."

"Well, you don't see many nobles fighting in the front lines like this," Lelouch said. "The upper class want their children to occupy positions in high places to avoid direct contact with battlefield. It is especially at large when in situations like this." He shook his head.

"Well, nobles don't like being given orders. And being reduced to foot soldiers is an insult to them," Jeremiah said.

Lelouch smiled, amused. "Them? Aren't you a noble, Jeremiah?" he asked in an amused tone. The man was also a person who once led the racist Purist Faction.

"Yes," Jeremiah said. "That reminds me of my days with the Purist Faction. Not proud of those days," he said.

"If I recall, you zealously pursued the ideals of the Purist Faction," Lelouch said, still amused. He didn't press on this for much longer before returning to Albert. "Tell me Major, how long have you been in this country?"

"About a year," the Major said.

"What is the situation in Portugal? Are the people who think that siding with Britannia is wrong?" Lelouch asked calmly.

Albert shook his head. "We never really associated ourselves with the people of this country. The alliance with Britannia wasn't even announced. I cannot really day based on observation," he said.

"Based on experience?"

"There might be people who will rebel against the government… some in military." Albert said. "I cannot say that this will happen, but it is very likely…"

Schneizel must have considered this when he plotted his things. If the government was not able to deal with rebels, Schneizel would leave them. But it would also pose danger with them. Perhaps this is why he decided to separate the forces. Britannia would fight its battle alone. "We have to watch our backs then," Lelouch said in thought.

"Do you think rebels would try to attack us from behind?" Jeremiah asked with concern.

"It is a possibility," Lelouch said. "We will formulate a strategy to deal with this once we arrive at the camp. I have to see what we have before deciding how we position ourselves," Lelouch said calmly, while looking through the window.

There was much to think about in this situation. It didn't matter if this was going to be his first battle. There were issues that needed to be dealt with and the mission would not be easy. Lelouch had no fears. He was not nervous. He had one thought in his mind and it was to win. He just hoped that he would not get over himself and think about advancing into Spain. If that happens, the dangers would increase, and Cornelia would fly over here, leaving someone in charge of the battlefield in Northern Africa.

Albert put on a relaxed smile as he looked at the three people with him. He had expected something different but they seemed like good people. He was not in bad company. He did have reservations about an inexperienced Prince taking charge, but so far, he looked comfortable, he looked like he was at home and he was asking the right questions.

Well, Jeremiah was someone he knew. Both the two surrounding the Prince had battle experience. Jeremiah was certainly an experienced soldier and from the info he received, Villetta was an elite knightmare pilot. Albert turned towards the woman and smiled.

She was no doubt a commoner. Then again, Lelouch's mother was a commoner.

When they arrived at the command center, the heart of the Platoon, Lelouch was the last to arrive. It was a military camp alright. From the structure enacted, he could easily conclude that the first company was stationed here and acted as the maintenance crew. The camp looked lively. There were a couple of fires around. He did wonder if it would not alert the EU of their location. He shook his head, they were in the middle of nowhere. It would be fine.

Albert led them straight to the G-1 base within the camp. The Major showed them around and where Lelouch would be staying before taking them the control room. There weren't a lot of people within. Lelouch set himself on the throne like chair within the control room and stared at the multiple screens on display before turning his attention to Major Albert. "Which squad is responsible for scouting?" He asked.

Albert smiled. There was no military experience, and no formal military training but the Prince wasn't stupid. "The Second squad, sire."

"I assume the three squads surround us as some sort of battle formation in case there is an ambush or a surprise attack," Lelouch said in thought. "I want a status report. I want to know what is happening within the parameters and the borders. The movements of EU forces."

"I will give the order," Albert affirmed.

"I want files of everyone within the Platoon. It should be delivered to me before I rest. I want to look at it before I meet the men tomorrow. You will have them come here tomorrow at 11am. Everyone except for scouts," Lelouch ordered in a stern tone. "Logistics?"

"The first squad…"

Lelouch shook his head; it looked like just one Squad handled all the matters. Well, it was no problem. They were better positioned to handle it all since they didn't have to worry about battles. Still, Lelouch would form different units within the Squad to ensure there was a separation of duties. He didn't want to get a mix of things. "Have all important documents sent to me. I will study them. Jeremiah, you will stay with the Third Squad tonight. Major Albert, you will return to your Squad but keep your lines open, I may have some questions for you." He paused, "You'll show him the way and introduce him, yes?"

Albert nodded.

"Is there going to be a problem?" Lelouch asked. "I want to know everything."

"Not that I can think of, sire," Major Albert said. "I will inform you once the report from the scouts comes in."

"I want them to report to me," Lelouch said. "It is not a matter of trust, Major. I just want to be familiar with everyone. Especially those whom I will work closely with."

"Of course, Sire." Major Albert saluted before turning to face Jeremiah. "Lord Jeremiah, shall we?"

The former Purist Faction leader hesitated for a moment before nodding his head. He went to Villetta and told her to keep watch on Lelouch and if anything does happen, she would first call him. Once done, he departed with Major Albert.

Once the two were gone, Lelouch released a long breath. "It is going to be a long night," he said to himself. "Villetta, you will be fine staying with me for a little longer, yes? I need you to be familiar with the logistics because as times goes on, you will be the person I trust to give me the proper information I need when formulating strategies."

This was what Jeremiah had said. She was going to be the one who stays closer to Lelouch. It wasn't going to be so bad. Being here, she was reminded that despite not being a favorite of the aristocracy, Lelouch was indeed a Britannian Prince.

"No problem, your Highness," Villetta said.

Lelouch smiled. "Come along then," he said as he stood up. Villetta followed him slowly towards his private quarters. The room they entered was small with couches surrounding a small table. On the left wall from the entrance, there was a large screen. The royal experience, she mused as Lelouch settled in a comfortable single couch. He had brought his own laptop and immediately put it on the small table in front of them. "Have you been to Europe before?"

Villetta shook her head. "First time," she said. "Also first time being close to the commander of a Platoon…" she said with a small smile.

"Well, this is also my first time in a Platoon," Lelouch said with a smile of his own. His eyes were fixed on his screen though. "But we have to claim victory, Villetta. We have to…" he fell silent after those words.

Villetta studied him for a moment before she consumed her time with some reports. Hours passed and the scouting report came and Lelouch continued to work. It was only at midnight that Villetta fell asleep.

Lelouch realized, she probably didn't sleep when he told her to sleep in their journey towards Europe. He didn't mind though. He merely went over to his room and took a blanket before covering her and then returned to work.

The Platoon was healthy. There were 95 experienced knightmare pilots in total. They didn't have enough knightmare frames for everyone but he was sure all soldiers would get their turn to battle. After all, he would be taking groups and groups to different missions. The Sunderlands they had were in good shape. And they had been supplied a couple of Gloucesters. The maintenance crew was fully equipped to handle the work needed for them and the scraps he needed could be fixed, and work the kind of job that he needed them to do.

Lelouch worked through the map along the borders searching for potential battlegrounds. He did not want to give away the location of his base regardless of what. But he would need to move it during the cause of engagements. For now, he didn't even know how many enemy forces he would be facing and the kind of frames they had. All that would determine their threat level and the best possible way to deal with them.

It did look like he would have to make the first move. That meant entering the borders of Spain. It was necessary. Schneizel hadn't said he couldn't and he didn't have to report to the Prime Minister about his methods. He was the commander here and he just had to make sure he guarded the borders. Given the size of his group, he simply could not allow the enemy to come to him. If he did that, he would find himself surrounded. If they were going to reach here, they had to be nothing but scraps by then.

Lelouch didn't know when it was that he started to feel sleepy but he forced himself to stay up with coffee before he finished his work. Once he was done, he went towards his bed and decided to rest.

Tomorrow was going to be another long day for him.

 **End of chapter**


	9. Chapter 9

The morning alarm had ensured that Lelouch didn't oversleep. Waking up had been a little hustle since he was honestly tired from the load he had put himself through the night before. Still, he was at war, he could not afford to take chances. What would happen if they were attacked and reports say that the military was unable to move because the commander of the company had been fast asleep? It was going to be a joke that even the generation to come would be told. If it was someone else, it would not even reach the eyes of the public. Britannia media did not report losses. It would not fit their narrative. Even a defeat was reported as a win. Who else would deny it when state media was driving through propaganda and blocked any other news that may contradict their version of events?

After waking up, Lelouch dragged himself to a shower and after a couple of minutes, he emerged, refreshed and looking lively. He would need to have another nap during the afternoon or when he does return from his operation. It was likely that the operation he was going to conduct today would take the whole day and perhaps even force them to camp a little away from their strong hold as they would have to move into Spain. No, he was certain it would take a day or two. He just had to calculate a couple of things before moving out.

After dressing, Lelouch made his way towards the small room he was using as a living room and office. Villetta was already up. She looked refreshed. He smiled at her.

"Good morning, Villetta," he said calmly as he took the seat he had vacated when he decided he needed to rest.

Villetta stood up and saluted stiffly. "Your Highness," she said without looking into Lelouch's eyes. She was trying to avoid eye contact.

Had it been someone else, she would have been kicked out. She would have been sent away or given a warning. But this person had given her the blanket he was supposed to put on. He had showed kindness to her. She hadn't been looking forward to sleep before he could but she had fallen sleep. Right in front of an Imperial Prince. It was embarrassing and unprofessional. She would make sure it never happened again.

Still, if anything, he even looked amused with her discomfort. She hoped she hadn't said anything in her sleep. That aside, she was glad it was him though. She was a woman in a field of men; so many don't have their woman with them. Some untold despair does occur to women in war. Humans could be such despicable creatures at times. Villetta was happy though, she was happy that she was following someone who was kind and certainly didn't act in the same manner as some nobles. She had made the right choice. Even if her dream is never realized, she would not have any regrets. She hoped so. This life didn't look like it was going to be bad.

"Your Highness," Villetta said to Lelouch in a measured tone. "I'm sorry about last night. I shouldn't have fallen sleep."

"At ease Villetta," Lelouch said in a calm tone without looking at the woman. His eyes were fixed on the screen before him. "It happens, but it shouldn't become a habit."

"Yes, sire," she saluted.

Lelouch smiled and looked up to her. "I'm sure there will be many nights where I will fall sleep here. It will be your turn to put a blanket on me and watch over things. Nobody has to know. While here, you are in charge of my protection, so this can be our little secret," he said.

"I'm honored, sire," Villetta said with a smile. She would be in charge of protecting Lelouch. It was a big job and she would handle it with care. "Would you like something to eat?"

Lelouch nodded. "Have you eaten?" He asked.

Villetta shook her head. "I was waiting to eat after you," she said.

"The kitchen should have the necessary ingredients for breakfast. If there isn't anything, you can ask a man named Rendell… he is in charge of our food supplies," Lelouch said. "You can prepare something for yourself as well. We have a long day ahead of us."

"I will go prepare right away," Villetta said before walking away.

Once she was gone, Lelouch put on a thoughtful look on his face. Villetta wasn't a bad person. He would get along just fine with her. Perhaps even more so than he had thought. Jeremiah had truly brought him a pleasant person. She was no noble but that was fine. He didn't care about status. It was all meaningless in terms of ability.

Lelouch shook his head and made final preparations to his plans. A couple of minutes later, Villetta returned to with their food. Lelouch closed his laptop and looked at the breakfast for a moment before glancing at Villetta.

She looked at him curiously before asking. "Is it not according to your standards?"

Lelouch shook his head. "I usually eat meals I prepare myself. I wasn't a Prince during my days at Ashford Academy. When Sayako was given time off from cooking, I did all that," he said before he started eating.

His sister was blind, so she couldn't help with anything. If he cooked, he must have also done other household chores. A Prince cooking food when he does have a maid. It was ridiculous. For a moment, she almost became too comfortable to say that she hoped to eat his cooking one day, but she bit her lip and stopped herself from saying such words.

 **Third Squad**

Jeremiah stretched himself carefully. It hadn't been a bad sleep. He had even hardly slept as he was in an unfamiliar territory, surrounded by people he didn't even know and his mind thinking about Lelouch. His Prince had spent night in that mobile base with Villetta – just the two of them. Jeremiah didn't allow his mind to wander but he was certain that the men would start talking soon enough. People talked. It was just in the nature if men to be curious and voice those thoughts. Well, as long as it was nothing that tarnished the image of his Prince, Jeremiah would not complain about it.

The men around here had been a bit difficult but kind enough not to offer him any hostility. When he came here with Major Albert, he had been introduced as one of Lelouch's guards. The man had quickly left to join his Squad and handle the duties that Lelouch had assigned him. Aside from that, he had spent some time with some of them. Satisfying their curiosity about Lelouch. Many of them were young. They were older than Lelouch but still young.

"Lord Jeremiah," Major Albert said, greeting Jeremiah. He wasn't alone. "I trust there were no problems after I left…" he said.

"None at all," Jeremiah responded calmly.

"Excellent. I myself am not familiar with the group since they only joined us recently but they appear to be the liveliest group," Major Albert said with a smile.

"They are young and energetic," Jeremiah admitted. He had seen how they behave. They were certainly colorful people. Then again, this was war. They had to be. In such times, they had to laugh when they could. They had to remember that they were people. The life of a soldier was not easy. There wasn't always a way back. People got killed in action and some were captured, tortured and then killed. It was war.

"This is Major Frederic," Albert said, introducing the man he was with. "Major Frederic, this is Lord Jeremiah. He once held the rank of Margrave when he was the leader of the Purist Faction in Area 11."

Frederic acknowledged Jeremiah's presence before speaking to the man. "Did you give them the orders from his Highness?"

Ah, the orders to meet at command at 11am today. Jeremiah had done it. Why did it sound like the man was looking down at him though? Jeremiah shook his head. "I have done so," he said before turning to face Albert. "Shall we?" he said, pointing at the car. He wanted to get to Lelouch as quickly as possible.

"Yes," Albert said before they walked towards the armored vehicle.

"Why does his Highness want to speak to everyone?" Frederic asked. "It is only going to create movements that might attract attention and during that time, the men will have abandoned their camps."

It was official; Jeremiah didn't think he was going to like this man. He was an elderly man. He hated people who have grown too old for military. They always thought they knew best. They were always right. The man was older then Albert, and yet it wasn't him who was made commander of the company during Lelouch's absence.

"There will be scouts observing the enemy lines while the men are away. The EU forces are not even anywhere near us," Major Albert said in a measured tone.

"Yes, you have already explained that," Major Frederic said. "What I want to understand is the main reason behind this. Couldn't he have done things differently?"

"I'm sure the Lieutenant knows what he is doing," Albert said. He glanced at Jeremiah for a moment, wondering why the man was silent. It was likely that he would jump on Frederic if he spoke out of turn. "His reason was that he wanted to speak to everyone."

"Speeches?" Frederic said. He smiled. "The Imperials do love making speeches. Let us hope that he doesn't think that wars are won by making speeches," he finished with a sneer.

Damn royals and their methods. He has been serving the Britannian army for how many years now? And a child with no military training, not even battle experience was going to lead him into war. Frederic didn't care if Lelouch was a prince or not, but he would not allow his men to led into their deaths by a spoiled brat.

Jeremiah finally spoke. "I hope that isn't the attitude you will be taking when before his Highness, Major," he said in a warning tone. "I don't care about your ranking or experience in military, but I will not allow anyone to insult his Highness in front of me."

Frederic stared at Jeremiah. A mad dog, he mused. A loyal servant to his master. He should have known. "Then you should not have left your position beside your Prince, Lord Jeremiah."

"Now now ," Albert interrupted. He did not want things to escalate and become dangerous. He should have said something about this when Lelouch asked him if there was anything he needed to know. "Do you think that the Lt. will have us ready to move out? Last time I spoke to him it was already past 12am," he said. "He really does work hard, doesn't he?" Really, Albert had expected Lelouch to sleep early and leave the other details to those around him. Yet, he seemed that he wanted to know everything himself. He was hands on. It did explain why he was even stepping in the front lines like this.

"He does. He likes to know everything that needs to be known so that he can factor that in when he makes strategy," Jeremiah responded calmly. "We will certainly have something to do today." He said with a grin.

"You look excited," Albert said.

"I have been away from battle for some time now," Jeremiah responded. "I have missed a good battle…"

"Perhaps we shall have one today to test your abilities and show your capabilities to your squad. It will inspire confidence to the men if the people surrounding his Highness are capable pilots," Albert suggested with a smile.

Jeremiah smirked. "I'd like that," he said. "It would be best to as his Highness will be able to see what those under him are capable of doing," the man said.

Major Albert nodded. He'd heard, the Eleventh Prince was a strategic thinker as the Second Prince. Well, that was what you needed in military. Without strategy, it was simply heading straight into the enemy lines.

 **G-1 Mobile Base**

The mobile base was a little small. Lelouch really needed something much bigger. Perhaps the first thing that would come out of the Ashford Foundation would be his battleship. It would have everything and would be able to go anywhere. He could also use it to bombard enemy lines. Of course, he would have to make sure it had some defenses to guard against missiles. But a flagship for the Vi Britannia company was needed and soon. It would need to have all the latest technology in terms of sensors, weapons and defense systems. He would need to talk to Lloyd about a float system. But that wasn't something he needed now. The battle ship was needed now. He would make the call to Ruben to have the battle ship be made a priority before the knightmare frames he needed to be built.

Lelouch shook his head. He was drifting away from the subject line. He needed to make sure that everything he needed was here before the mission begins. He could attend other things once he has made sure that the traps were laid. He simply could not allow the EU forces to come closer freely without a plan to decimate their forces.

He looked up when Villetta returned. "Got everything?"

She nodded. "They said they have them," she said before settling down across Lelouch. He has been busy with work since he woke up. He worked too hard. She wondered how long he was going to keep at it. "They are busy installing the explosive devices on the Burai's. It will take some time for the maintenance team to get all 17 damaged Sutherlands into operational levels. Some parts are still missing."

Lelouch smiled. He would have called the island to get himself the landmines he needed. It was good that they were fully stocked. "I just need them to be able to move and the ejection system working without fail." Lelouch said. "We need to establish a secure communication line with all squads. I don't have those tools now. Perhaps Major Albert will have them."

"Should I contact him?"

Lelouch shook his head. "They are on the way for a briefing before we head out for our first mission before we engage the EU." He said calmly.

"What are you going to do with the landmines and why do you want those frames to be fitted with explosives that can only be detonated remotely?" Villetta asked with curious look on her face.

"That, Villetta, is a good question," Lelouch said with a wide smile. But he did not explain anything to her. "If we are told that over 1000 enemy frames are marching towards us, what would you recommend?"

There was indeed that chance. No, they could face much more enemy attacks than this. They were at the door steps of the EU after all. "Retreat," Villetta said cautiously. "We don't have enough knightmare frames to stand against that kind of force."

"From the list of weapons I have seen, we do have hundreds of missiles and rocket launchers. Foot soldiers can use them," Lelouch said. "Because the odds could be against us, it will make our victory even more resounding. We must hold our own until reinforcements come."

"When do you think they will arrive?"

"In two weeks or three," Lelouch said in thought. "It shouldn't take more than a month for Cornelia to fully annex Morocco with the forces she has…" she also had motivation to finish things quickly. It was going to be day and night attacks until there was no more resistance and she could think of coming this side. Well, once Britannia reinforcements arrive, there wouldn't be much of a problem. And maybe their unit would have done its job.

 **About 30 minutes later**

Albert turned towards the entrance of the control room as Lelouch walked in with Villetta slowly behind him. He smiled seeing the two. "Lieutenant," he saluted, causing both Jeremiah and Major Frederic to salute as well.

"Majors," Lelouch said calmly before gracefully settling on throne-like seat. He faced the elderly Frederic. He had not been expecting to see such a person. But from the profile he read about the man, he knew he was going to have a problem. "Major Frederic, I have already met the company of Major Albert. I hope we get along."

"Well, you are the commander here," Major Frederic said with indifference.

Lelouch smiled upon hearing those words. It was just what he wanted to hear. "Indeed I am," he said those words in a hardened tone. "The reason I called you here is because there is an operation we are going to run and it will see us head into Spain."

As he spoke, Villetta went towards the men handling the screens and gave them something before returning to Lelouch's side. She stood on his right hand, and stared at the map on the screen.

"Shouldn't we wait to see the kind of enemy we are up against?" Major Frederic said. "We don't even know what will wait upon us the moment he head into Spain." The man Major asked in a cautious tone.

"We have scouts who have already looked into the borders and there is nothing. We need to move ahead a bit to know the direction of the enemy. There is no guarantee that they will come to us if we just sit here and if they get through before Britannia war ships arrive, we will have failed to do our mission. We have to ensure that they set up camps and move in a direction they can face us," Lelouch explained lightly.

"Our location remains unknown to the enemy but they know the location of the Portuguese forces. Our unit is small and the enemy could easily miss us since the border is wide," Major Albert said in thought.

He had thought that this would be a problem. It was all apparent they would have to be the mobile force and to engage the EU forces. It was going to be a troublesome situation. Mobility would be needed and awareness of their surroundings would become essential. If they were going to the ones to provoke an attack, they would be forced to take some risky movements. He had known that their unit wasn't going to be the one to engage in the all-out war. They were just going to rattle the EU forces and stall their movements. It was a dangerous movement. And it would need someone who thought deeply. It did not need someone who accomplished things by brute force. They did not have the knightmare frames for brute force. If they tried it, they would be crushed.

"This is why we must force the enemy to move the way we want," Lelouch said. "Our first job is to head into the Spain and lay out some traps. But for the enemy to fall into such traps, we would have to attack them first and lead them into such traps."

Jeremiah looked at map with different places marked. His Prince was always at work but this was going to be dangerous. But Lelouch did seem like the person who would make daring moves. He now knew why Cornelia was concerned about Lelouch doing something reckless.

"Isn't that dangerous?" Major Frederic asked cautiously. "You are saying we should move into enemy territory and provoke an enemy who might have forces that might outnumber us greatly. If we provoke them, and they chase after us, we won't have anywhere to run without coming back here and that would expose our location."

"It is dangerous," Lelouch said. "But this is war. We are already in a dangerous situation."

"And what do you know about war? Your Highness?" Major Frederic asked in a calm tone, a bit condescending with his eyes narrowed a bit. "You have no experience with war."

Lelouch stared at the Major with a cold look. "Major you have a problem with me, don't you?" He asked in a calm tone.

"Am I permitted to speak freely?" The Major asked carefully. He wasn't about to insult a Prince in front of others. It would be trouble for him. He was not happy with the situation but he was still aware of his position.

"Yes," Lelouch said.

"I think it was a mistake to have you enter the battlefield without any experience. You should have been brought here as someone who is here to learn under a real commander," the Major said.

"I see," Lelouch took a thoughtful look on his face. "If I make a decision and you think it will only kill your men, would you disobey my orders and do what you think is right?"

"I would rather be court martialed than lead men into their deaths," Major Frederic said. "I am still speaking freely, am I?"

Lelouch smiled. "Yes," the Eleventh Prince said. "Unfortunately, Major Frederic, I cannot work with a person who I know will disobey my orders. My strategies depend on people willing to follow my orders without hesitation. If you hesitate, you die. You put the lives of others at risk and we fail. I will not have that. You might think of me as a spoiled Prince who cried to the Emperor to be given command. But let me tell you a secret, I had no intention of coming to war. Like I soldier, I move when commanded.

"Still, Major Frederic, if you cannot follow me, you cannot work for me. You cannot do as I tell you. Those who work under me must be willing to follow me to death. If you cannot do that, I will complete your transfer papers and send you back to Mainland, Major. It would cause problems for you if I transfer you and state your reasons. I'm sure your career would be over. You will stay with us, but I will temporarily relieve you of your duties. Until you have decided that you want to follow my orders, you can return to your post," he paused and looked to Major Albert. "Do you have the same thoughts as him?"

"Not all, Lieutenant; I am a soldier, I know my place," Major Albert said in a firm tone.

"Good," Lelouch said. "Major Frederic, you will still keep your presence in your squad, but you won't lead them into battle…" he took a thoughtful expression. "There is another assignment that you can do for me. We don't know the situation behind us. I want to know if there are rebels who have rebelled against the government. If there are such people, we can expect them to either give away our location to EU or attack us from behind. We don't want a situation where we are retreating and find our path blocked."

Major Frederic was not pleased. He didn't want to leave command of his unit. But he was given an order and he had to execute it. It was obvious to him that Lelouch was not going to tolerate insubordination. At least he was disciplined – considerate a bit. "You want us to gather information in near by places?"

"Yes."

"When must we move?"

"Before the day ends. You have to do this discreetly. So there won't be knightmare frames," Lelouch said. "But keep in contact at all times."

Major Frederic merely nodded.

"We are going to plant landmines on three generation locations," Lelouch went back to the main subject. "This are specifically made for knightmare frames. I will also need a unit to keep an eye on the EU movements. Once he plant these landmines, we have to make sure that the EU steps on them. However, for that to happen, we have to be the ones to make the first move to attract their attention. This will be a job that will take some time, we will need to have scouts stationed ahead to follow enemy movements."

"We?" Jeremiah asked. "Are you also going?"

"Of course," Lelouch said.

"If I may, my Lord," Jeremiah started.

"You may not, Jeremiah," Lelouch quickly said. "I want to see the terrain myself. It makes it easy to formulate a strategy when knowing the kind of battlefield we are in, we will navigate through. You will remain here and Major Albert will go with me along with Villetta. We will need supplies and 10 knightmare frames."

Traps were something Albert liked. And he was going to be with the Prince when it does happen. He wanted nothing but to see the explosives being turned on the enemy. It would be chaos. "When do you start?"

"2pm, we depart," Lelouch said. "The EU forces are already making movements. We cannot just sit back. I need the best with when we depart. Can a military vehicle move through?"

"Yes, we chose this location because we could move our vehicles," Major Albert said.

"Villetta, we will need to three vehicles to carry extra men and the landmines." Lelouch said. "Major Frederic, I'm sure you will be able to work through things on your own."

"Of course," the Major said.

 **11am**

Lelouch looked at the plus 90 knightmare pilots standing before the G-1 base. He was standing atop of it. This was his first outing. His first mission within Britannian Army. He has to perform great things. As much as he loathed to say it, he was the son of Charles zi Britannia. Britannian Imperial family were expected to be superior in intellect, based on Charles own ideology. It was all just nonsense though. If that was the case then the mediocre prince had certainly read the wrong script. Maybe the emperor would blame the mother but Odysseus does look like their father in his younger days. It was safe to say he'd only inherited looks but not the brains. Lelouch has heard people saying that he did inherit their father's eyes but those whispers only repulsed Lelouch. He hated the emperor with everything he has and would gain.

He had nothing. He had no experience but soon these men would be chanting his name. They would be hailing him. Jeremiah would lead the charge. Lelouch allowed himself to dream. It was possible. It was very possible for him to end this crusade as a hero and with fame. He would accept it. It was necessary tool for his revenge, his dream to make Charles pay and to make this world a better place. Killing Charles was just the first step, he needed to make this world a better place for, Nunnally.

He still needed to navigate through this trial that Schneizel had set up for him. It would not be easy, but he would do it. He needed to do it. If he failed, there was not going to be a second chance. Charles didn't do second chances. You failed him once, it was all over. The second prince probably even had bets on his performance. His friends within Britannia would be watching with keen eyes, ready to make their moves if Schneizel was selling them the real deal.

"Men," Lelouch started. He then paused and looked around, just to ensure that they were looking at him. "Standing here, you might be thinking; just another noble, another member of the royal family using his status to get ahead. Many of you… no," he shook his head. "You all want to progress in life. You don't want to be just a private, just a sergeant. You want to become Captains, Majors, Colonels and Generals. Some of you might see those dreams, many of you will not. I started at the top. It was not because I am qualified in the eyes of the Military generals. It is because I am Lelouch vi Britannia.

"Commoners probably hate the arrogance and superiority complex of the nobles. I lived for 7 seven years with commoners. My mother was a commoner. I have seen both worlds and I have experienced them. Perhaps to some I am a spoiled Prince. I have done nothing to prove you wrong. But I will prove myself to you that I can lead you. I hate nobles who think because they are born noble they can do everything. People who used their status to achieve good positions are never good for anything," he then laughed. All eyes fully on him as his laughter was heard by all. "Ironic isn't it? I am here because I am a member of the Imperial Family. Had I not been a prince, I would have been standing there with you."

Yes probably. Normally, things work like that. But with Britannia, those of noble birth gain everything and get the top positions. Perhaps Schneizel would not like his speech. But it was necessary for him to put it there for these people to be able to follow him. To be able to follow his orders without question or hesitation.

"But I am not!" Lelouch said with force. "I am standing here. As the commander of this company. I will not lead you to your deaths. I cannot promise that everyone will live. I am not naïve like that. This is war. But I will fight with you. And if you obey my commands, you will win. We will win. We will perform miracles. Yes, I would not have been here if I was not a Prince, but I was not chosen because I am a prince. I was chosen because I can lead you to victory, and to victory I will lead you. But victory will only come if you follow my orders, regardless of how tall, risky they seem. Those who are not willing to follow, should stay behind. I will have them transferred to another unit because they refuse to follow serve under me."

He scanned around, smiling. It was a cruel thing to make it sound like they had a choice. If it was said that they were being transferred because they didn't want to follow him, it would be all over. But Lelouch wanted to make it clear. He would not accept anyone who doesn't want to follow his orders.

"There is only one thing want from you," Lelouch said, moving his right hand from left to right. "To obey me. Yes, Lelouch vi Britannia commands you to follow my instructions."

"Yes, your Highness!"

It was resounding and made Lelouch smile. Now that the first order of business has been handled. Lelouch could get to other things. "Do not look at me and be afraid. I am your superior officer but also your colleague. When you have problems, come to me. I have Villetta with me. She will be my assistant, if you cannot get to me, speak to her." He said and then smiled. "Now, I know you men speak, Villetta is my assistant, but let us not think about anything I might be doing things with her. She is an experienced knightmare pilot and I hope you will treat her with respect as you respect me by not questioning anything."

He would have to thank Milly for years of torture and bullying. Had it not been for her, he wouldn't have thought of saying something like that. He made a mental note send her a thank you card. Villetta would forgive him but he needed a light moment.

The rest of talk was simply just telling them he had called them because he wanted to introduce everyone and see all their faces since he has spent time reading their profiles. After that, he told them of a mission they had to handle and requested volunteers but there were too many hands that were raised. He ended up just picking some men and then dismissed everyone else.

Lelouch looked at Villetta and smiled at her. "You'll forgive me for that," he said.

Villetta would have been a little uncomfortable if what he had said would not have been the truth. She has already seen how Albert looked her. Maybe this would remove some eyes from her. They were going to spend time here; people would eventually know that she was staying a bit too close to the Prince.

"It is fine," Villetta said with a small smile on her lips. "They did need that."

"I didn't take you for a person of humor though," Jeremiah said. Lelouch didn't do jokes and he'd never seen the Prince making any.

Lelouch shrugged. "I am not," he said. "Major Albert, send out the scouts. They need to move ahead of us to be able to warn us if there is something. We don't want to lay traps with the enemy watching. It would be pointless. And they might end up using them against us."

"That would be most unfortunate and embarrassing," Albert said with a nod. He would give the order to ensure things were handled and they didn't stray away from the marked spots. "That was a nice touch though," Major Albert said with a smile.

"I thought as much," Lelouch said turning towards the G-1 base to rest a bit before they have to depart. Villetta and Jeremiah followed him from behind.

The moment the entered the base, Jeremiah spoke. "My Lord, wouldn't it be better for me to go with you?"

"And who would be left in charge, Jeremiah?" Lelouch asked evenly.

"Well, Major Albert could remain here," Jeremiah offered.

Lelouch shook his head. Jeremiah did not see the same image he saw. He was only thinking about his protection. But Lelouch needed the man to be familiar with the soldiers. This was their start and they were likely to be stuck with each other even after this mission that they had to complete. He wanted to put a bridge between himself, those around and the men. It would ensure effectiveness of the company. He needed a unit that would produce the best results they could produce. Happy soldiers would give their all to all introductions given to them.

"Jeremiah, Villetta is already going with me. How does it look to the men when I only take those I came with to our first campaign?" Lelouch asked calmly.

Jeremiah adopted a thoughtful look on his face before muttering something. "I still think I should do with you."

"Lord Jeremiah," Villetta started in a measured tone. "Are you suggesting that I cannot protect his Highness while you are not around? And please see the bigger picture here. These are soldiers, morale is everything. Trust will boost their morale and that means that his Highness will be able to get them to act to their best strengths."

"It's not that I don't trust you," Jeremiah was quick to say. "This is the first thing we are doing and I want to be part of it."

Lelouch shook his head. "You'll be in charge of holding fort in my absence. I have also sent Major Frederic away. You will be in charge of the company in my absence. That is an important job I can only trust you to do…" he said sternly. "Villetta, you'll wake me up when it is time. I need to get some sleep," he disappeared after saying those words.

Jeremiah stared at Lelouch's back for a moment before following Villetta to a private place to sit. He settled in silence before turning towards her. "He pulled an all-nighter, didn't he?" he asked. It could only be the reason the Prince needed to nap now. Lelouch was not the one who took afternoon naps unless he was really tired.

"It sounds like something you are familiar with," Villetta said. "But yes, he did spend much of the night working."

"Villetta," Jeremiah started in a serious tone. "You must sometimes tell him to stop working. It is for his own safety. You are not just protecting him from enemies but also from himself," he said.

Villetta shook her head. "I'm not going to cross the line," she said. "The Prince is generally fine but I saw how he handled issues with Major Frederic. The man is probably going to be forced to retire at the end of his campaign," she said.

Jeremiah sighed. Well, he hoped that Villetta would grow comfortable enough to warn Lelouch that he was taking it too far. The former Purist Faction leader leaned against the sofa and breathed out. "This looks like it is going to be something that will take a whole month. Well, it does give his Highness a chance to make a name for himself."

"You think so?"

Jeremiah nodded. He didn't care about the war with the EU. He didn't care who died. He was only concerned about Lelouch and his goal. Jeremiah was here to make sure the Prince was safe and he was taking a step closer to his dream. "When it happens, it will also be good for you. This is just our first battle. But if we succeed in this one, there will be many more that are important. Operating closer to him, when he rises, you also rise, Villetta."

Becoming a noble was her dream. She wanted it but it wasn't her priority now. Admittedly, she was most interesting in helping Lelouch with everything she has to make sure that this was a success. Perhaps it was for her selfish reasons but she did think that he was an interesting person and the political battle would become something else if he became a success as his elder brother seems to think he is. Villetta did not voice her thoughts to Jeremiah. She was still undecided. She needed to see more of Lelouch and she would.

 **A couple of hours later**

Lelouch was sitting in a Sutherland, testing its controls. After seeing the specs with the Lancelot, this frame was a disappointment. Well, he just needed it for moving around also to ensure that they had some protection in case the enemy attacked them. He was also going to leave these frames buried somewhere for future use. He didn't know when they would face a brick that would destroy their frames. In case such a situation occurred, he did need to have 'reinforcements' to avoid his men getting captured and tortured to tell secrets and everything about the unit they are coming from.

Lelouch tapped into the communication lines. "Let us move if you are all set," he said.

"Yes, your Highness," a reply came.

Without another word, the frames left the makeshift hangar and started their journey towards Spain. The Scouts had reported once but they had said there was nothing. They were still active. Lelouch had confirmed this before he even made movement towards the knightmare.

It was a bit late by the time they were through into Spain and they covered some distance before Lelouch decided it was time to rest. They set up camp and refueled the trucks. A fire was prepared and the group set around the fire.

This was war, this was a commoner's way of doing things. He would be sleeping comfortably in the truck. But still, commoners had no problem living like this. Euphemia wouldn't have a problem. But Clovis would be horrified. That naïve and narcissistic brother of his was something else. They may have played along when they were children, but they certainly had different values regarding life. From what he has seen, and despite introducing the Honorary system in Area 11, Clovis didn't give a crap about the elevens. They were not people and the good work he did was simply for public image. He shook his head, he was drifting away from the scene before him.

"I didn't know you could move a knightmare frame like that your Highness," a soldier said to Lelouch. It was even surprising that a damn royal Prince was sitting with them around a fire without looking like he was disgusted and wanted to be home.

"I learned from a third generation frame," Lelouch said calmly. "You didn't tell them I could pilot?" He asked Major Albert who was sitting on his right, with Villetta on his left.

The Major smiled. "I thought it would be good if they just saw it themselves," he said.

Lelouch just shook his head. The Major really looked like a nice person and compared to the stern Frederic, he was easy going and quite friendly. "Well, being able to navigate one through this terrain isn't like fighting. A real battle is something different."

"Been to one?"

Lelouch smiled but did not answer the question. Some things were better left unsaid to avoid the curious questions that may follow afterwards. "If I did not have any confidence in my skills, I wouldn't have left my comfortable bed and a hot shower," he said.

"We could have carried something better for you," Another soldier said with a grin.

"This isn't a vacation, now is it?" Lelouch said with a smile. He had seen war before. He had seen how destructive it was. And this time, he was going to be the one marshalling soldiers towards destruction. And at the end of the day, he would be singing, all hail Britannia. Ridiculous. Who would have thought that things would come to this point? "I'm going to rest. Once the scouts report in, you can rest as well. We have much work to do tomorrow and we start much earlier."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Villetta watched Lelouch leave and was tempted to follow him. She had been doing this often, following him around. She was always close to him. But if she stood up now, it was only going to cause these men to have something to talk about. Her eyes snapped towards Albert when she felt his eyes staring at her. It was only then that she realized that she was the only woman within this camp. There were women there, but none of them were taking part of on this expedition.

"So, Villetta-san… how long have you been working with Prince Lelouch?"

"Lieutenant," Villetta corrected. "A couple of months. I used to work under Lord Jeremiah in Area 11."

"Surprising," one of the soldiers said. "All the way here, you never left his side."

"You seem to forget that he was once thought dead and only returned to the 'living' some months ago," Villetta said staring into the eyes of the soldier who's asked. "It is just easy to approach him. I guess he has just been living a normal life for too long…" she then stood up. "I'll check on you to see if the scouts have reported."

Major Albert merely nodded.

When Villetta walked towards the comforts of Lelouch, she found him wide awake, sitting with his eyes staring into the dark night. He didn't seem to recognize her presence until she spoke. "I thought you wanted to sleep."

"I'm still their commanding officer and a prince; there is a limit to how much time I spend with them. I can eat with them once a month, but not every day," Lelouch responded calmly. "Will you be uncomfortable with your sleeping arrangements?"

They were going to be surrounded by the other men. As the most important person, Lelouch was sleeping at the heart of the circle they had drawn. She would be sleeping a little closer to him than the rest. "Not at all," she said.

Lelouch eyed her for a moment before nodding his head. "Let us turn in then… we won't get much rest tomorrow and I would like to finish before the day ends," he said.

Villetta had seen that they had brought a large quantity of explosives with them. They were going to cover a huge wide area and if they manage to trap the enemy within the field, they would destroy many knightmare frames. The risk was worth it. "After you, your Highness."

 **Meanwhile**

 **G-1 Base**

Jeremiah was sitting on the seat of command within the control room. He was back in charge once more but he could not help but worry knowing that Lelouch was out there and he could face enemy attack from the EU. Lelouch had been most worried about an attack that might come from behind. He had been left in charge because of this. He hadn't heard anything from Major Frederic yet but although Lelouch had not voiced his worries about a potential attack from rebels, he had told him to keep a watchful eye. There was the possibility but he was expecting for the team sent to investigate to at least have some news for them. He hoped it was good news and not bad.

The former margrave turned to the blinking large screen. When Cornelia's image appeared, he nearly frowned. She had a bad timing. Lelouch had just left and she had given him an order not to leave the Prince's side. Well, it could not be helped. He could not obey Cornelia and ignore what Lelouch was saying. The second princess was of higher rank, but Jeremiah's loyalty was not to the Imperial Family but to vi Britannia.

"Princess Cornelia," Jeremiah greeted.

Cornelia narrowed her eyes as she looked around. She could not see the person she wanted to see. He had not bothered informing her when he touched down. It was no worry but she expected for him to be present when she called. "Where is the Lieutenant," she demanded.

"Out," Jeremiah said. "He has gone out to lay some traps for the enemy," he added without going into detail. He did not wish to tell Cornelia that Lelouch had gone into Spain. It would be a rather complicated conversation with the General.

"And you are not with him?" Cornelia asked with a stare.

Jeremiah shook his head. "No," he said. "He left with a capable group along with Villetta. I have been ordered stay behind in charge of the company until he comes back."

"Have you encountered EU forces yet?"

"Not yet. The Scouts are still searching but there is no sign of them. I don't expect battle within the next two to three days." Jeremiah paused. "The Lieutenant should be done with the traps by then," he said.

At least Lelouch was thinking smart. It was not the kind of strategy she would choose. Cornelia often went through her business with brutal force. She has already started things on this side and would be going out once more for a night raid. "Tell him that I want to speak to him when he returns," she said.

"I will do so," Jeremiah said.

When Cornelia disappeared, Jeremiah breathed a sigh of relief. Cornelia could be scary at times. He was glad that she had not thrown a fit this time around. He amused himself thinking of what she would say if she knew that he called her worries for Lelouch a fit. She would certainly not be happy with him. Jeremiah was certain she'd try to drag him into a ring.

He just had to make sure that Lelouch calls her when he returns. Jeremiah was expecting the Prince to return tomorrow, but it could be the day after. They had gone quite the distance away from here.

 **The Following Day**

The first terrain they had set explosives on was a barren field that could be used for battle. Lelouch had chosen well. Well, this might be EU space and Spanish army would probably be engaging them while reinforcements from France and other nations were being deployed. The second place they had buried the tags was a forest. One could easily hide the explosives there. The third was similar to the second. The three locations were miles apart. Besides, this was EU home ground, they would be thinking that they know this place much better than them and were at home ground. Lelouch would not allow them feel comfortable. Not when he had victory to claim.

Villetta had been at work along with Major Albert while he sat in his frame, dishing out the orders while observing everything and making notes so that he remembers what needed to be remembered.

"That is about the last of the explosives we have, Lieutenant," Major Albert spoke through the communication line.

They had set up some heavy hitters here. Truly, there would be some beautiful fire works that would be ignited when the explosives were set off. But would the enemy come here? Lelouch didn't seem to doubt that they would be led to come here. It led Albert to believe that they were going to so something reckless just to gain the attention of their enemy. When that happens, they would have to run towards this place. The only way that was going to happen was if they found the enemy moving and directed them here. He frowned thinking that this was possibly the reason Lelouch had sent scouts so far away from them just to be able to confirm the location of EU forces.

"Excellent," Lelouch said before checking the time. They could only afford to move a bit back and then they would reach their strong hold tomorrow. "Let us move away from this location," he ordered.

Just because he had sent scouts didn't mean the others had not done the same. Lelouch hadn't picked up anything in his radar though. But you could never be too sure. There were certain things the radar could not pick up. Besides, the scouts he'd sent out had gone through different directions. It was likely for them to miss a single unit. He hoped there wasn't such a case nevertheless.

The knightmare frames moved back towards the direction of their base but stopped. They were still within Spain. It had been necessary to move deeper because they still didn't know how the enemy was going to move. Instead of being attacked, Lelouch wanted to attack first. Of course, he would need to study the EU forces a bit. But there was no better lesson than one in real battle. Naturally, he had to win.

Lelouch stepped out of his knightmare and looked around the forest for a moment. It was good for hiding. Yes, he could mark this place and leave some frames here for the enemy to take.

Lelouch had the networks checked to ensure there was connection. It would be disastrous if they were ambushed.

"That was easy enough," Major Albert as his frame moved towards Lelouch. "I have been fighting for a while but this is the first time I have done something like this. We usually set up traps in our own territory not in enemy lands," he said.

"Benefits of arriving first in the battlefield." Lelouch said with a smile. "Our opponents will likely have that idea and we will take advantage of it. We do need greater flexibility to be able to draw them out…." Hen then paused for a moment before asking. "What is the mood?"

It took a moment for Albert to realize that Lelouch was talking about the mood with the man regarding this plan. "They are skeptical," he answered honestly. "We are used to shooting at Knightmare frames rather than this. But I am sure they are curious to see how this will work out. If it works out, they will be much more open to your strategies."

Most probably. But Lelouch did not doubt. He wasn't going to wait for the EU to walk into their territory, he was going to force them to act. He would make sure of it, he would take risks to make it work and he would walk into those risks. If the king was not willing to walk the talk, how were his followers supposed to follow him?

"It will work out," Lelouch said with confidence. "We they will get that chance to fire those bullets. This is only our first assignment and the situation is a little unfavorable so we have to resort to such measures. In our next assignment, things should be different," he said.

"There will be more," Albert said. "So you're saying whenever you are going to battle, we will be going with you…" he said.

"If possible," Lelouch said. "With Britannia's military, there are usually forces all around but what is missing is a commander. If there is nothing and we have to go for reinforcements and support, I will be calling this group. It works better to have the same people you know."

Albert nodded. "Hopef-" he trailed off when his line started picking up a signal. "Michael, what's up? You were not scheduled for a report."

"We have a major problem, Major," Michael said through the line. "There are two units coming along the way. But with the directions they are taking, the other unit is going south where reinforcements are supposed to land when they come and there other is coming this way," the man spoke in a panicked tone.

"The strength?"

"Combined force is more than 270 knightmare frames."

Major Albert fell silent for a full minute. That was much more than he has expected. They did not have the numbers to go against such a force. They were going to get killed if things work like this. This was going to be a problem for them.

"Thank you for the report, Sergeant," Lelouch spoke while Albert was still in thought. "What type of frames are we talking about?"

"Panzer-Hummels, sire," Michael reported.

"Stay on guard and keep watching them. Make sure they don't notice your presence. If they do, let us know immediately," Lelouch said.

"Yes sire!" Michael saluted before asking in a quiet tone. "Permission to ask, sire."

"Granted," Lelouch said after a couple of moments.

"Will we survive this?"

"We will, Sergeant," Lelouch responded in a tone full of confidence with a bit of arrogance as well. "As long as you follow my instructions… you will not only survive, but you will win."

The Sergeant didn't have much to say to Lelouch before cutting off the line. Lelouch didn't waste time in contacting Jeremiah. He needed to sort this out quickly. "My Lord?"

"Jeremiah, I want you to mobilize as quickly. Get all the Gloucesters we have been given and some missile launchers. Bring also 50 Sutherlands with you. I will send you the coordinates to where you must meet us," he ordered. "Don't waste time, Jeremiah."

 **End of chapter**


	10. Chapter 10

There wasn't much difference between members of the royal family and the nobles they viewed as their peers, but there were some differences and in this situation, it did tell. Since Sergeant Michael informed them of the enemy, Lelouch had been on his toes, busy working on possible scenarios, he wasn't consulting with anyone. Even the delightful Villetta Nu was just standing there with him, answering a couple of questions then and there. Her opinion was not being asked, but everyone knew who was in charge here. The prince didn't look like he was lost. He seemed like he has been doing this since growing up. Albert hadn't thought that there would be this quick disciplined reaction to the news of EU forces marching towards the borders.

Perhaps this made the major difference with some nobles. The last noble who had been his commander was quite honestly an idiot. The man hid it well by surrounding himself with smart generals who would tell him his options. When the situation was bad, they never showed much leadership other than cowardice. They were an arrogant bunch, the same could be said for the Imperials, but when you had an emperor who did not tolerate failure, there was no room for cowardice. The Britannia handbook stated that the princes had to be show their superiority because they were born to a superior line.

Albert had been impressed with Lelouch. He had reacted far faster than him and he did not show cowardice. It was apparent that the prince was a dare devil. This whole reason they were here just meant that the prince wasn't someone who was afraid to lift the first weapon. He was even here with them and hadn't mentioned of returning to their base of operations at the mention of overwhelming forces coming towards them.

"How long until Lord Jeremiah arrives?" Albert asked Lelouch.

It took a couple of moments for Lelouch to respond to the question. "Given our location, not until tomorrow morning," the eleventh prince responded in a calm tone. "EU forces are not close to making contact with us at the current pace they are travelling time, so we have time."

"They still don't know we are here," Albert said. "This could be a good thing, right?"

Lelouch frowned slightly at the thought. "I'm not sure they don't know we are here. Given their strength and current trajectory, it is safe to assume that they know there were enemies around this side. They most likely don't know the strength, but they know," he said.

Perhaps he was just being a cynic but Lelouch suspected that some people within Portugal had seen this happening and informed the EU. Even if they didn't see everything at first, they must have seen some signs and sent a message. Within the European Union, the member states keep their identity but the moment they are taken over by Britannia, they become secondary citizens in their own country. If the government surrendered without a fight, some people within the military wouldn't be pleased with it and they would go against the wishes of the government. It was a likely scenario.

Albert shared Lelouch's frown but it wasn't him who responded, it was Villetta. "Are you thinking that some people within Portugal told them this?" she asked.

Lelouch nodded. "It seems likely to be the case," he said before falling silent for a moment before speaking again. "Major Frederic should come back with something that confirms this."

"Should we worry about them?" Albert asked. "If there are enemy forces within the towns, we can expect to be attacked from behind. That group didn't take any knightmare frames with them, if they are attacked, it will be dangerous," he said.

"We cannot afford to worry about them, Major," Lelouch said in a stern tone. "We already have a bigger problem that we face and if we don't focus on it, we won't make it alive. Schneizel would not have sent us in if there was a bigger army within. If he missed something, it shouldn't be anything that could threaten our battalion. I have left enough frames in our base to protect it," he said.

Albert nodded. They certainly had a much bigger problem than Major Frederic. Their problem was in the size of two armed units that could crush them. But he was not afraid. The moment Lelouch refused to think of running away, one thing became certain, they were going to engage the enemy and they would either die trying or actually win. There was no other way. The prince didn't seem to have any thought of running away. Perhaps it was also the pride and the arrogance involved. No sane person would think of taking an enemy that trumped them in numbers 3 to 1. Only an insane person would actually think of running after them first.

"We will camp here for the night and form a parameter… as usual there will be night-watch duties but we have to be vigilant this time around. When Jeremiah arrives we will discuss the way forward and how we get the enemy to move towards us. The Sergeant should have more information for us by then," Lelouch said. "Relay this to everyone."

"Yes, sire," Albert said before tapping into the linked com line.

Villetta faced Lelouch for a moment, studying his body language. She hadn't been around him a lot but she could tell although he looked fine, he was obviously thinking deep about the situation. Well, he was facing the reality that he could possibly die in this situation. But if Villetta was able to live to see another day, she was going to follow the eleventh until she retires of old age.

"Did Prince Schneizel predict this kind of situation?" Villetta asked in a quiet tone. She didn't want the others to hear.

Lelouch shook his head. "We moved the fleet into Northern Africa so openly because we wanted the EU to focus there. Forces were secretly moved to this side because we did not want the EU to know of our presence here. The EU should have been only focused on the Portuguese forces stationed along the north side of the borders. Our role was to ensure that if there were another small force that would try to enter this side, we would be able to cover the borders and ensure that they did not cross into Portugal."

"But with their movements, to this side and to the southern side of the border, they know something," Villetta said with a frown on her lips.

"Yes," Lelouch said without emotion. "It is going to be a difficult battle. I didn't expect things to move so quickly. And we cannot leave the borders because if we leave, the EU will quickly cross through the borders," he said before failing silent to mull over his thoughts. "I really wasn't expecting this much of a challenge."

Villetta figured that much. "Can we get reinforcements from the Island?"

Lelouch shook his head "There isn't much within the Island," he said. "Cornelia probably took most of the forces with her. They could not have moved many soldiers into the island without alerting the EU. If reinforcements are going to come, it is the fleet coming from Britannia."

Villetta fell silent for a couple of moments before finally speaking. "You still think we are going to win," it was not a question but a statement.

"Yes," Lelouch said with confidence. He then smirked. "We are not going to engage them in a head on fight. We will die if we do that. Tactics to perform miracles will take us through this situation. But I will still need something to be delivered by Schneizel. I saw it while looking at the catalogue of weapons they have on the island. As soon as we head back to the base, I will talk to him about it."

Otherwise, there would be no way out of the situation.

 **With Major Frederic**

Perhaps he had been a bit too quick to judge but Prince Lelouch had all the right instincts. Frederic would not have thought of something like this if he had been in command and he would have certainly not ordered men to look into it. But the Prince was careful about looking at his back. You could never know what was happening who would stab you. Perhaps he learned this through the treacherous game that despicable members of the upper class play. If you were not careful, you were going to find yourself bleeding with a deep wound from the back.

The Major stood up as he heard a knock on the door to the room he occupied. He walked towards the window and peeked through it. When he could not see anyone, he peeked through the key hole. He knocked once the people outside knocked twice. He slowly opened the door with a gun in hand. He quickly put it away when his men walked in before shutting the door.

They were nervous. He could not blame them. The moment he arrived in this town, it had been known they were Brittanians. It hadn't taken long for them to discover that they were not loved. But they had a mission and despite the apparent contempt, no one had done anything against them.

"You look unsettled," he said.

"We need to get out of here," one of the soldiers said in a stern tone. "We can't spend the night here."

"What?"

"One of the towns people told us this. She was very serious when she said. If we don't leave, we will be killed." Another soldier responded.

"Who is the enemy? Do they have frames? How many are they?"

"We don't know their numbers but from what we gathered, there people here know that there are Britannian soldiers camped close to the borders. The government did everything to purge rebels before they did anything. What remains now is nothing but remnants that don't have the force to do anything."

"But they have intelligence," Frederic said. "We will leave at dawn. We don't want to alert people when we leave and we have to ensure that we are not followed. For now, we don't go out."

"Shouldn't we contact command center?"

"We will do it outside of this town," Frederic said. "I don't want to have our frequency tapped in by EU spies."

This was a dangerous situation. They should have brought their frames with them. If they had done so, things would have been much simpler for them in their escape. It would not be easy. Thinking of this, he frowned. "Alex," he called. "You should go wait in the truck. We don't know if it is safe or not. If someone attempts anything, you can deal with it. We don't want any nasty surprises waiting for us… when we want to leave."

 **The Following Morning**

It was early morning when Jeremiah finally arrived in a Gloucester. They had about 15 of them. This was Cornelia's thing, but they were much of an improvement compared to the Sutherlands. And he needed something to break through the EU's frames. In total, Jeremiah had brought 65 frames with him. Added to the ones they already head, it was a good number. But not all of them would be fighting. He had only brought this as an emergency in case things didn't fall according to plan. He did need to hold the enemy at bay for a couple of days for him to think about things, and while Cornelia completes here mission.

"My Lord," Jeremiah looked tired as he greeted Lelouch. He looked as if he hadn't slept at all. "What is the situation?"

"Very bad," Lelouch said with a smile.

Jeremiah looked curious for a moment, wondering why the prince would say the situation was bad but still smile. He shook his head, that wasn't a happy smile.

"We have an estimated number of 270 enemy frames along the way, Jeremiah. And we have to halt them."

Jeremiah turned to face both Albert and Villetta whom were sitting beside the black haired prince: this was bad. He hadn't thought that things would be like this. Had Cornelia known that things were like this, she would have promised to be here at any moment and then ordered Lelouch to keep his distance. Jeremiah was glad that this was happening after he had spoken to her. "That is a lot of frames to destroy," he said with a whistle.

"Tell me about it," Albert said, there was a hint of sarcasm in his tone. "It is going to be shock to the men to learn this. I'm quite certain they will be trembling thinking they are going to die," he said with a small smile on his lips. A soldier afraid of death, he mused, it was amusing. A soldier took the job knowing that there were high chances of death. When you went for war, you were never certain you were going to return. Death was part of the job.

"The latest report from Sergeant Michael is as had said last night, they are going towards different directions, and there are indeed two units. So this works better for us. The unit with close to 140 frames is heading towards south, and the rest are coming towards us. We will wait until there is a good distance between the two units before making our move on the small unit," Lelouch started with the briefing.

"The idea of coming here is looking all the more to have been beneficial," Albert said. "Had we not realized this, we would have been aware of them a little too late…" he shook his head. "What is our move?"

Lelouch smiled. "We are going to attack them," he said calmly.

The three stared at him but it was Villetta who spoke. "I thought you said we couldn't engage them head on," she said.

"We can't get involved in a drawn out battle with them, we don't have the frames," Lelouch said with a shake of his head. "We are not going to attack them while they are wide awake. That would be disastrous. The frames the EU is using are primarily for long range battles. If we charge head on, an escape would be difficult unless we are in the middle of a forest. But if that is the case, we also cannot move freely."

"Are we going to do a night attack?"

"Early morning," Lelouch said. "We will attack them while they are camping. They don't think we have already come across this side. We are not even sure if they know of our presence. Even if they know, they won't be expecting an attack in their own territory. 4am, we hit them and escape. A small force is doing this, and they send a small unit to give chase. If the unit is less than 100 frames, we form three units and ambush them in the woods. If they are more than that, we lead them into one of the traps we put."

"An ambush would work since the will be at an advantage of fighting them in close combat," Albert said with a nod. "But why do I feel like the five frames we leave are a major twist in them?" he asked curiously.

Lelouch smiled. "Not this time," he said. "That is just a sacrifice I am willing to make for the next play. I could try to play the same trick twice but I don't want to risk it…" He drew on the ground with a stick and point where the EU forces were coming from, their location and the location of their traps. "We are going to move to this direction and camp there until it is enough. If they move throughout this day, they should have covered enough distance between the two units. For now, just make sure that the energy filters are fully charged."

"How are we going to attack?"

"Villetta and I will remain hidden with 40 frames, for backup. And we will be offering long range support." Lelouch said. "You and Jeremiah are going to boldly charge into the enemy camp, before shouting, there are too many of them, five pilots will head in first, acting as shields. They will then eject and you will throw then retreat. While you are retreating, we will cover you."

"Then we run towards one of the traps," Albert said. "If they don't follow?"

"They cannot afford not to follow us," Lelouch said. "This is what you call a cowardly attack and a general will be thinking that we are too afraid to face them head on and decide to chase after us. He will send people to crush us," the prince said.

"These all depends on whether they take the bait," Villetta said with a stare.

"Yes," Lelouch said. "You will pilot the Sutherlands. In the next battle, you will use the Gloucester. I don't want to lose any of them now since they are currently our best frames." He then stood up. "Major Albert, gather the men. I have a message to give them."

Albert left without saying anything.

Jeremiah stared at Lelouch. "This is just one crazy plan, you Highness," the man said with a shake of his head. He then grinned. "But you wouldn't be doing this if you didn't think we could succeed, right?"

Lelouch did not grace the question with a response; he climbed atop of his knightmare frame and waited for the men to gather. The others had obviously told them about their enemy. He could see how subdued they were. Yes, this was one of those situations that looked like just one of moments you think your superiors have sent you to die.

"When I first appeared before you, some of you probably thought that I was just a spoiled prince. I am a member of the Imperial Family, after all. When you were just told that we had an overwhelming number of enemies to fight, you probably thought, isn't he the vi Britannia who was thought to dead? The vi Britannia who is loathed by the aristocracy for being born of a commoner? Yes, I am that vi Britannia." Lelouch started in a stern tone.

It was nothing serious. He wasn't the most loved person within the upper class. Perhaps to the commoners they all looked the same. But those who looked deeper knew. Maybe these men didn't even know that he was loathed but thought because he was a prince, everything came easy. Lelouch snorted at the thought – nothing ever came easy. He had to fight for everything. Even within his family, it was a war zone. They smiled in the public to avoid scrutiny but there was no love. Some members actually thought of just killing each other. No doubt some of his siblings would celebrate his death. No, they were not his siblings – they just shared the same cold hearted father.

"When Britannia invaded Area 11, I was there. I saw the deaths, the destruction with my own eyes. I was very young then, but I understood war then. Machines explode and get destroyed easily. But you spend so much time building them. I survived a battlefield, a war zone. And I will survive now. We will outlive these machines. We will live. We will survive. Our names will be known throughout Britannia, throughout the EU. We did not come here to die. I did not come here to die. I could have simply stayed in Pendragon, enjoyed the comforts of being an imperial Prince but I am here. I could have fled and to a save zone when we were told that the enemy is large, but I am here.

"I am going to lead you into battle. We are not going to commit suicide. I ask you, all of you, believe in me! Believe in your skills. Believe in Britannia. Believe that we will win." Lelouch created a fist, holding tightly. "The enemy is indeed large and if we are not careful, we will get crushed. But I did not survive the war in Area 11 to come and die here. I came here to win. But victory will only come if you obey me; If you listen to my commands." He smiled, holding out both hands. "If you believe, I will show you miracles."

 **Hours Later**

There was little light, and they were moving like ghosts. They had already met Sergeant Michael who by now was no longer piloting a knightmare frame. He had abandoned it because it was too risky. If the enemy had sent scouts, they could have picked up his signal. And alerted them of his presence. It was a risky job as he had nothing but two bags, one for communication and another for supplies. If he got caught, he would be crushed. But his job was an important one that he needed to do. He had to keep an eye on things.

The Sergeant watched the enemy camp. The knightmare frames were off, only a handful were on stand-by. The mobile command center had its lights out. People in there were probably sleeping. Soldiers standing in watch were patrolling the perimeter with guns besides them. But they were not too far off the main camp. The camp was large though and the many men were resting with some sharing jokes along a fire without doing their duties.

It was right, this was a sneak attack. It was no longer strategy. In strategy, you fought your enemy fair in a battle. Lelouch wanted to slaughter men who were sleeping. Michael would not say it was wrong. This was war. And if they did not play such underhanded tricks, they were not going to win. It was actually special for the Prince to actually admit that there was no other way they could win aside from such moves. The EU was going be rattled and pissed off. Now, they would no longer sleep in peace, fearing that another attack would come. It was going to be a pitiful experience for them. Even more treacherous if their commander becomes paranoid because of this attack.

The Sergeant left his thoughts when he heard something snapping. He looked from where he laid and saw an armed soldier taking a leak. He hid himself. If he could maneuver quickly, he'd take his knife and slit that man's throat. It would be less one pilot. But he could not move and he did not want to give away his location. For a long minute he held himself motionlessly. Three more passed with the soldier just standing there. And then another two more passed as he disappeared and went back to join the others.

These people's pattern for looking at the perimeter was that they looked around every now and then before going back to take a breather. Another group would take the next lookout. It usually lasted for about 10 minutes. Well, around this time, many of them were already thinking about resting. It was cold around this time of the night. It was no wonder they could not stay away from theirs.

"Lt. Colonel," the Sergeant contacted the prince. "Do you copy?"

"Copy, Sergeant," Lelouch responded from the other side.

"You have about five minutes to move in. They don't appear to be checking out for knightmare frames at this point," the Sergeant said.

Lelouch nodded. "Frames require energy. If used recklessly, they will run out of energy and won't be able to move when they have to," thinking of this, Lelouch just thought of a good plan he could use. Even if he was not able to destroy enemy frames, he could make them useless by destroying the enemy's energy fillers. "Be on stand-by, Sergeant… but in case I don't get back to you, you are still aware of your objective, yes?"

"Yes, sire!"

Lelouch turned towards Jeremiah and Albert's teams. He had his own team ready to fire. They were hiding within the trees, the enemy a distant ahead within a clearing, a stretched line created with no frame positioned behind the other. "Move now. Charge head on and make sure you take out as many as you can!"

Jeremiah grinned. This was not so bad. It wasn't like attacking forces that were prepared for them. In this way, they would hit enemy frames and kill some soldiers the moment they open fire. It was going to be a blood bath. But this was war. He was prepared for this. It wasn't like this was his first time hitting against people anyway.

"Are you ready, Major?" Jeremiah asked Major Albert.

"Ready when you are!"

"Men, let us move," Jeremiah commanded as the frames began to propel themselves through the ground, loaded and ready to fire. They all had chest mounted machine guns. It was going to be chaos. But first thing first, there had to be some explosion.

Jeremiah moved a bit stealthily but with speed.

"Britannian Frames!" Someone shouted in Spanish.

Albert cursed. They had yet to even open fire. "First unit, throw in the grenades!" he shouted.

Five frames spread out and moved ahead of the group. Their objective was the knightmare frames, primarily. The hundreds of them were put in line with many men lying in camps. The first frame threw a Chaos Mine towards the inactive frames, the Second towards the many camps spread through the clearing. The other three just threw them randomly towards the enemy.

It was chaos as the soldiers were awoken by the sound of alarm. But there was no time to get into their frames. The chaos mines ran rampant; they sprayed shrapnel through the unarmed soldiers. The chaos mines that were set off within the frames started hitting, causing multiple of explosions.

When the five Sutherlands made way, Jeremiah took charge. "Open fire!" He roared.

The chest-mounted machine guns started spinning before they started releasing bullets. It rained bullets as over 20 frames started firing randomly towards the enemy lines. The Panzer-Hummels were reined in by heavy fire within seconds.

It didn't take long for the enemy to charge start returning fire. Jeremiah knew it was time when the frame beside him had its gun blasted off. He frowned when another lost its leg.

"Time to retreat before you all lose; those frames still need to see another battle!" Lelouch's voice rang through the radios of all frames in battle.

"Yes, my Lord!"

"My frame is busted!"

"Mine too!"

"Eject from them!" Jeremiah roared as he began to move back. They were starting to receive more heavy fire once more. The margrave cursed loudly when his gun stopped spinning – he was out of bullets.

"Open fire!" Lelouch ordered from his lines. The soldiers did as told. He frowned noting that the EU forces were sending fire back towards them. "Everyone, follow me, don't fall behind or you will die!" Lelouch was already twisting his frame when he said those words.

And then, began their retreat.

The commander of the EU forces looked furious, seeing the scene before him; destroyed frames, many dead soldiers. He had more frames than soldiers! Who was going to pilot the damn frames?!

"Commander."

It took a moment for the man to turn towards the unfortunate soldier. "How many destroyed?"

"About fifty. We are still checking… it could be less…"

"How many soldiers?"

"We are not sure of the numbers… the grenades wounded many…"

"Ready those who can stand. We are going to hunt those Britannian cowards and slaughter all of them!" He ordered. "Britannian cowards! They have never attacked like this! They always charge on to display their superiority!"

"Does this mean, they don't have the numbers?"

"Yes," The commander said. "I want us to be ready to move out in 10 minutes. We need to crush them before they get far away. If we deal a heavy blow, will affect the morale of the Britannian reinforcements."

"Should we contact the Second unit?"

"Of course not!"

 **With Lelouch**

They hadn't stopped for anything except for changing energy fillers. It was dangerous to stop before they were closer to their goal. They were still well within Spain and would play around here, just to give the impression that to the enemy that they were located within the Spanish borders. That would halt their movements a bit. They would not stop moving until they had destroyed them and Lelouch was banking on this. He had truly been glad when Michael sent in a code message saying the EU forces were moving towards them. The men had been thinking that their plan hadn't worked and they would not be able to fight. There was probably well within 90 frames that were still operational and they had to deal with it.

"I thought we were dead when they started opening fire!" A soldier said, stepping out of his frame. He looked relieved. Happy that they had made it. And achieved their goal.

"That was indeed close," another responded calmly.

"We were only able to pull it off because we had the element of surprise," Lelouch said to curb any excitement. "We won't be able to pull off something like this next time around."

"But we managed to destroy many of their frames. It might not be much but we reduced the enemy forces by something," another solider said. "I actually thought we wouldn't make it. I did fear that they would be quick to react," he admitted in a quiet tone.

It was a close call, Lelouch could admit that. "We are just an hour away from the field we have prepared for our enemy. We will begin moving once more in 20 minutes. They are still behind us," he reminded the men. "Gather your breath and we will celebrate victory once we have led them to the graveyard."

"Yes, sire!"

Villetta, Jeremiah and Albert gathered around him. They all looked happy that things were working according to plan. "Well, Lt. Colonel, that went well. We surely delivered some heavy losses not just in their frames but also with the soldiers. The Chaos Mines were quite merciless with unarmed soldiers."

Yes, quite brutal. A blood bath. Lelouch shook his head. It had almost been like an army opening fire on civilians. "That was just the first part and not everything went according to plan." He said.

"What?" Villetta asked in curious tone. The men who ejected from their frames were saved.

"We lost 9 frames. I was only hoping to lose just five. These five four could change things." Lelouch said with a shake of his head. "Sergeant Michael says that there about 90 frames coming our way. We still cannot face them."

"Minus the nine we lost, we only have 75 frames. If we engage them, we will be heavily damaged if we come out of it. Our repair crew is miles away from here. If we suffer heavy losses, we will get slaughtered," Albert said.

"We are still in a difficult position…" Jeremiah muttered.

"But if we destroy the coming group with minimal losses, we it will give confidence to the men and we will be able to destroy the remaining forces," Villetta said before facing Lelouch. "And your words will have value to them. What you say next, they will accept because your strategies have already worked before."

Lelouch smiled. "That is the idea, Villetta," he said. "But we have to navigate through this situation and to be honest; we will likely suffer some losses."

"While it is always good to keep everyone alive, it was always going to be an impossible task given the enemy we face," Jeremiah said to which Albert nodded.

"The men will no doubt be prepared." He said with a nod.

 **An hour later**

"30 minutes away from contact," Jeremiah reported.

Lelouch had many frames stationed on a high ground. The explosives were set on a large clear ground. The frames were offline but weapons were already on position. "Jeremiah, take twenty frames and make contact with the enemy. But don't get too close. Just be close enough to get them to notice you. And then start charging back. Major Albert, you will keep your position from my right, but keep the frames offline to avoid detection. If they detect that there are frames waiting for them, they will know they are being led into a trap."

"Yes, Lord!"

Jeremiah was already in position. He figured this was the situation in which he ends up losing people. There would be some losses. "We will return fire, yes?"

"Of course," Lelouch said. "You have to engage them in fire but keep your distance. The moment you arrive in the field, form a shield and start firing at them. When they push you back, retreat into the hills."

He held the magic button with his right hand. Once all conditions were set, it would be check. His victory.

There was no room for anything less. These men were counting on him to come up with something to lead them into victory – for their survival. And his survival.

Jeremiah looked at the map on his screen for a moment and then checked his energy bar. All was good. There were around 90 frames coming their way. Heavy hitters who looked good on long range fighting. The moment they arrived within enemy fire line, they would be receiving heavy fire. This was dangerous. Much more dangerous than their last job. Well, at least the Sutherlands were much more advanced than Panzer-Hummels.

"Afraid, Lord Jeremiah?" one soldier asked Margrave, who was still. 19 frames were around him, ready to move further on his command.

"Afraid? Don't be ridiculous!" Jeremiah roared.

"Why standing still?"

"Saying my final prayers!" Jeremiah said. He could not afford to say that he was thinking about the situation that was ahead of him.

"I didn't take you for the religious type."

"There are about 90 frames coming our way. We have to be standing in the way and receive heavy fire. All of them will have their bullets aimed at us. Our frames could be full of holes by the time we return here," Jeremiah responded in a serious tone.

"We'll be dead by then," another said without emotion. "Well, our commander sure has some crazy ideas. But if we succeed, we will take out many of them."

Jeremiah closed his eyes for a moment. "Well, if we are going to get blasted, we may as well blast some knightmares ourselves!" The man roared and handled the Sutherland's control. He started speeding towards the enemy.

They travelled for about ten minutes before they started seeing their opponents within their radars. The EU forces were the first to open fire on them. They could see them formation. There were only five in the front. "If they are like this, we can hold our own!" a soldier said through the radio before returning fire while they stopped going forward.

The moment he said those words, two more groups split from the unit, creating three lines. And they pummeled them with heavy bullets, forcing them to start retreating.

"Well shit!"

"You just had to jinx it!"

"Fall back!" Jeremiah ordered as he began to move backwards.

The Sutherland closer to him received a hail of bullets that burst its right hand. Jeremiah was forced to twist around and return in reverse while returning fire. He cursed loudly when the bullets started to him hard. Anymore of this, and he was going end up having to eject from the Sutherland to survive. Well, unless the damn Europeans decide to shoot him in the air.

"You look like you need help." Two Sutherlands flanked both his sides and started firing back at the enemy.

Jeremiah breathed a sigh of relief. He could escape. He focused on this retreating. They managed to the point of contact. They made sure not to step onto the explosives they had buried.

"Form the shield and start returning fire!" Jeremiah shouted. He kneeled in front, his frame was already damaged. They didn't need to lose more frames. Six frames stood side by side and started shooting towards the EU forces that started into descend into what Lelouch had termed as a graveyard.

He was not able to return fire for more than minute as his frame lost its mobility and he was forced to eject. While in air, saw all frames in front bursting, and only three managed to eject safely. But one was shot while in the air. He closed his eyes; that was three comrades lost.

The remaining frames started retreating into the hills in Lelouch order. Once they were in the safe zone. "Prepare to open fore!" Lelouch commanded to the knightmare frames surrounding him. He then grinned evilly. "Thank you for coming, my friends. This was prepared for you!" He pressed the button.

Boom!

The ground burst beneath the EU frames, exploding into a forceful force that tore through many frames, causing some to explode. It was chaos as the EU troops didn't know what hit him. It was about 2/3rds of the enemy forces that were caught within the explosion.

Major Albert didn't waste time in ordering his men to move. He would have loved to marvel at the destruction of the knightmare frames, but there were still more than twenty that were outside of the explosion. "Hit them while they are still confused!"

"Yes Sir!"

And they charged in from the sides.

Lelouch didn't waste time in moving along as well. He didn't want to lose anymore frames than he has already lost. "Move in! They are at a disadvantage in close-combat!"

Major Albert pointed his assault riffle towards the head of the frame in front of him. A bullet went through, hitting the frame. A slash harken from burst out and hit the frame on the shoulder. He pulled it closer to him with and it hit with a rifle were the pilot was located. A bullet went through the cockpit.

He almost cursed when a bullet him on the back. When he twisted around, he found a Gloucester standing on the shoulders on the Panzer-Hummel. An assault rifle aimed right above the cockpit. A couple of bullets were released, before the frame burst into flames.

"You are welcome, Major!" A voice said through the communication line.

The Major did not respond, he wanted to pilot a Gloucester but he would get on it soon.

He twisted around, only to be shot multiple times on the hand holding his assault rifle. The hand was torn off, causing him to move back to a safe distant.

"Don't lose your focus, Major!" It was a warning tone from the Eleventh Prince who was standing behind the frame that had hit him. The Eleventh Prince was armed with two assault rifles and both were pointed at the back of the frame in front of him. Both rifles were fired simultaneous, blowing up the frame before it could twist around. One of the rifles was then dropped to the ground.

"Sorry about that," Albert said turning around to look for an enemy to fight. But he then realized, they'd had over 50 frames razing hell to fewer frames which were not designed for close-combat.

"Major, we did it," a soldier said to Albert. He was already out of his frame.

Albert looked around before responding. "Indeed we have…" he said.

Lelouch looked around with satisfaction. It always looked well when things went according to plan. It has been a week since he came here, and they had managed to claim a huge victory with minimal losses. He did not leave his frame, but remained there. He could not dwell on this. He needed to know which step to take next before getting too excited about victory.

"Today, we have won but it was not clean. We suffered some losses, but we won." Lelouch said to everyone without excitement. "Those who survived, you live to fight another day. To the fellow Britannians we lost, let us thank their service and effort. Because of them, Britannia won. My last order is this battlefield is that you gather the remains of your colleagues. We will make sure they receive proper burial."

After saying those words, Lelouch fell silent before getting out of the cockpit. His three leaders were already close to him. Jeremiah had a certain look about him. Villetta answered his questioning look.

"He is just pouting because his frame got lost before he could even do anything on the last part of the battle," she said in an amused tone.

"Men don't pout!"

"But you do seem like you are pouting, Lord Jeremiah," Albert said with a look. "How did you even get destroyed so easily?"

"How did you even end up being saved by his Highness and crippling your frame?" Jeremiah retorted.

"Now now," Lelouch started in a calm tone, though a smile on his lips. "We claimed victory here, but this is far from over. There is still the second unit that is heading south. If that unit changes direction, we will have troubles."

"Shouldn't Britannia reinforcements be coming now?" Albert asked. "It has been a week already," he said. He knew it would be dangerous if the other unit joined in the attack.

"I will hear from Schneizel," Lelouch said with a shake of his head. "But at least for the next two to four days we will be safe. They are not going to attack us and probably won't even move from their location. The remaining forces, I mean."

"Our first assault did hurt them badly and I am certain that they now have more frames than soldiers," Major Albert said. "No, with the numbers they sent. I wouldn't be surprised if it is just fifteen units they have left. But why won't they attack?"

"Because they did it and we led into a trap. It is likely now that they won't even chase us anywhere because they'll be thinking they are being led to another trap. As things stand, unless one of our units stays by the site we put our explosives, they are not going to fall for the same obvious trick twice," Lelouch explained lightly. "But at least we now know that the first unit doesn't have enough frames to challenge us."

"Excluding the hundred and forty that went South," Villetta reminded the Prince.

Lelouch nodded. "I don't think they will come to us except sending some frames. But we don't know what will happen," he said. "For now, we need to recover and keep watch and wait for them to attack us. You three will now pilot the Gloucesters. We will return to our previous location where our supplies are. But I imagine it won't be enough for everyone."

"Unfortunately, no," Villetta said with a shake of her head.

"I figured as much," he said. "Of our remaining frames, you will divide them equally and form two platoons. I will take ten with me. But they will come back with the supplies. We will take the frames that can be fixed and the wounded."

"Are you also going to take a Gloucester?"

Lelouch shook his head. "I'm the commander and in a battle were we are at a disadvantage; it would be a waste." He said. "You will keep in contact with Sergeant Michael regarding the movements of the enemy. When they start moving, contact me and I will return with the remaining soldiers who have yet to taste battle."

"What more will you need aside from food and water?"

"Energy fillers and something for entertainment," Albert said with a smile. "The men are going to be in celebratory mood tonight."

Lelouch did not comment on this. "Villetta, I don't need to say it, but you are coming with me. We should be by the base tomorrow morning. We won't camp with these people."

"I understand," Villetta said. She was going get a hot shower. Yes, the first thing she was going to do when she arrives would be taking a shower.

 **Later that night**

The mood was jovial, Albert had been right to say the man would be in the mood tonight. If they were not in service, they were probably going to be dancing and drinking tonight. Jeremiah did not join in the fun jokes they were doing. He just sat comfortably along with Major Albert. He was beginning to like the black haired man. He was easy going and the soldiers seemed to respect him. He seemed like someone who could be trusted even. It was a special situation. Jeremiah hadn't thought he would make friends, but he has. Perhaps Kewell would have had things differently had he decided to join them. Perhaps he would some time later.

"Thinking something deep?" Major Albert asked. "Or are you perhaps still pouting about not getting in the fun?"

"I was not pouting!" Jeremiah exclaimed. "It was disappointing though," he admitted with a deep frown.

"I can imagine," Albert said in thought. "Well if it isn't the battle you are thinking about, what could it be? You are surely not thinking about what the Lt. Colonel will be doing with Villetta, could you?"

Jeremiah stared at the man. "His Highness is not some teenage boy high on hormones," he said fiercely. "There are much more important matters to think about than that. We are at war, Major."

Still, if there was going to be woman in Lelouch's life, it was certainly going to be that blonde vixen he saw at Ashford Academy. If anything, she seemed to make Lelouch nervous and she had already marked her territory. Well, anything could happen. Lelouch wasn't even the kind of person who deeply thought about relationships. There was always something far more important for him to do and think about. It was perhaps why he has never had a girlfriend till now. He certainly didn't lack admirers from what Jeremiah has seen.

"You should loosen up, Lord Jeremiah," Albert said. He paused when a soldier walked towards them and asked if he could sit in. When they gave permission, he settled quietly.

"I heard they were making fun of you for having lost your frame in battle," the soldier said to Jeremiah.

"Oh, that is what has you down!" Albert said.

"It was my fault," the soldier suddenly said. "His frame received heavy fire while protecting me. I could have died there. No, when my frame lost its foot, I thought I was dead. Thank you, Lord Jeremiah."

Someone was thanking him. Jeremiah smiled for a moment. "Rank and name, soldier."

"Private Jackson Simons!"

"Well, Private, I hope next time you will be watching my back," Jeremiah said.

"Of course…"

"Go back and join the others Private. You fought well today," Jeremiah said and watched the private leave. Once he was gone, he stared into the fire in front of him. He was still not used to this. He was a noble; this was something that only commoners did. Yet, it didn't feel so bad.

"So far, everything has worked well. The men are starting to respect Prince Lelouch. He took us through victory today and if we end up winning, they will be truly praising his name even in their homes," Albert said. "Even I didn't think things would go so well. Still, you must be willing risk it and he certainly isn't afraid to dive in with his head first."

"He was not put in command here because of his status as a Prince, it was simply because Prince Schneizel knew he could do it," Jeremiah said proudly.

"Well, nobody doubts that now," Albert said. "We will have our own dark knight once this is over."

"Perhaps," Jeremiah said in thought. "I get feeling that it is only going to get dangerous from now on," he said. "The enemy will be smart by now and they won't charge in recklessly."

"I get that sense as well," Albert said. "Well, let us hope the Lt. Colonel will come up with another plan. But I fear the plans will just become a bit crazier…"

"If the situation calls for it…" Jeremiah said.

 **The Following Day**

Perhaps the enemy spies had tapped into her thoughts and heard when she said the moment she arrived she was going to take a shower. When they arrived at the base, they handed everything to the first squad. But the mood had been a little dim and it had alerted her that something was indeed wrong. She had frowned. They had come back with good news about their victory in the first contact but the mood in the camp had been low – something big had happened. Although he had seen it, Lelouch had given much reaction to it until they settled at his private place within the G-1 base. 1st Lt. Morris joined them. He looked normal though - as if nothing as wrong.

"What is the situation?" Lelouch went directly to it after the man settled down.

Morris was silent for a couple of moments. "We received a coded message from one of the soldiers you'd sent to look for information within the Towns. He stated that the there are people who support the EU within the closest Town from here and that they probably are giving information to it. He said there were enemies within the Town and they been marked the minute they arrived. He was given the mission to guard their car after one of their contacts informed them that they would be killed. But Major Frederic and the others did not show up in the agreed time. He soon learned they had died. He could have escaped but he did not because he knew coming back here would only be leading the enemy towards the base."

Lelouch frowned deeply at this. He certainly had not expected to lose men like this. It was a problem and he would have to think about dealing with it effectively. "Do they have knightmare frames?"

Morris shook his head. "No," he said. "It appears that the government went on a purge against all it suspected and destroyed all frames that belonged to people it did not trust," he said.

"Thank you for the report 1st Lt." Lelouch said to Morris. The man saluted before walking away, leaving the prince and his assistant.

Lelouch really needed to talk about this with Schneizel. He could not afford to have frames charging up to his base. But at least they had not suffered any kind of loss that would make a mark on how things went with his future battles. Still, this was going to be a shock to the men. It was their loss and win to their enemy. This bad news aside, everything else looked like it was going according to plan. He just need some new information before laying out on how things proceed for now on.

"Do you think we should tell the others about this?" Lelouch asked Villetta. "I'm thinking of just hiding it and then tell them afterwards."

"I think it would be best to tell them," Villetta said in a quiet tone. "They will be motivated to continue fighting by it. Besides, if you do it, it sets precedence and you don't them fearing that someone important is probably dead despite there not being announcements about it."

Lelouch thought about it for a couple of moments before nodding his head. "You should go rest. I will handle things on my own. I can't shower now before working."

"I will stay until you finish…"

"I wasn't giving you a suggestion, Villetta; I was giving you an order," Lelouch said without looking at Villetta. He was opening his laptop, ready to begin with his work.

Villetta hesitated for a moment before standing up. She thanked him and then disappeared. She washed herself and went back to check on Lelouch. He hadn't even noticed her presence before she disappeared to rest. When she returned five hours later, she found Lelouch dead asleep on the couch – laptop still open. She was tempted to take a look on what he was working on.

She walked over to him. She stared at his sleeping, peaceful face for a moment. He was certainly not the same person she heard laughing when he ignited a chain of explosion that destroyed many knightmare frames. He looked like the older brother she had seen talking to his younger sister with love and tenderness. She shook her head and slowly moved her right hand, wanting to poke him on his shoulder but his eyes shot open and she immediately retracted her hand on her reflex while taking a step back.

Lelouch stared at Villetta for a moment before sitting up straight. He really needed to sleep. And take a long bath and eat something heavy. He was starving.

He looked at the time. It was just after noon. There was still time. He faced Villetta for a moment before speaking. "Did something happen?"

Villetta shook her head. "I just wanted to wake you up," she said calmly before sitting down.

"I see," Lelouch said in thought. "Have you eaten?"

"No," she said with a shake of her head. "I just woke up. I was no longer feeling hungry after I bathed. But I could go ask for something for us," she offered.

"Do that," Lelouch said as he stood up. He didn't say anything else to Villetta. She sighed in relief once he was gone. That moment had been a little awkward. She was surprised he hadn't said anything about it. It wasn't like he hadn't seen that she was really close. Then again, he could have simply lost himself in his thoughts once more. He really did have a tendency to go that far.

About two hours later

Lelouch was sitting at the control center, waiting for Schneizel. He had called earlier and was told the Second Prince was unavailable and but would be told to get back to him as soon as possible. He did need something from his brother and he needed to as some questions. He also did worry about the frames that were heading south. If they decided to change direction and move towards them, it would be a big problem and he didn't need the trouble.

After a couple of minutes, Schneizel appeared on his screen and Lelouch put on an expressionless mask. The Prime Minister returned this with a smile. "It has been a number of days, brother," he said. "We haven't spoken since you departed."

"I have been busy," Lelouch said calmly.

"I assumed so," Schneizel said. "The progress?"

"We have already destroyed about 90% of the EU forces we are facing again. I don't expect battle in the coming days," Lelouch said. "I don't know about the forces heading south."

"So you have had success," Schneizel said with a smile. It was nothing less of expected. But it was something that made him feel relieved. He was happy. Cornelia would at least stop demanding to know how Lelouch was fairing.

"Did you expecting anything less?" Lelouch asked in a calm manner.

"Not at all," Schneizel said.

"It wasn't easy though. The unit we faced had 130 frames. We were forced to do some tactics that brought us a few raised eye brows from the men but we managed to succeed. It would be problematic if reinforcements come. I will forward you the detailed report once I finish it," Lelouch said. "But so far so good. I'm surprised you didn't keep calling me…"

"I didn't want to sound like I was telling you how to perform your duties. I figured if there was something wrong, you'd call for me. But if you didn't call, all was well," Schneizel said lightly. "You said you had been away, does it mean that you left your base and led their attack yourself?"

Lelouch nodded.

"You're becoming too much like Cornelia, brother. You need to be careful that you don't take too many risks. I can't afford losing you again," Schneizel said in a bit seriously.

"Nothing is going to happen to me," Lelouch said, almost with indifference. "I wanted to ask you regarding the reaction to the revelation that the Portuguese government had decided to surrender to Britannia. Military especially," he said.

"So, you have faced some problems," Schneizel said before falling silent for a moment as he tried to figure out what Lelouch had encountered. "It has already become public knowledge that you have engaged EU forces but the details are a bit sketchy. But once you send that report, I will ensure that details become clear… now with regards to your enquiry; my agreement with Portugal was that I would honor my end of the bargain as long as they ensured that any form of rebellion would be handled without destroying the country."

Lelouch tapped his index finger for a couple of moments before responding. "I feared that there would be a negative reaction once it became apparent that battles had started so I had sent a team to near-by towns to search for information. No one returned. "

"That is unfortunate," Schneizel said. "Do they have frames?"

"Very unlikely," Lelouch said. "But speak to the government so that they can deal with it. I would rather not have to watch out on the back as well," he said.

Schneizel nodded. "The EU forces within the northern side of the border have yet to make contact with Portuguese forces. Neither side has been willing to make the first movement. Cornelia should be done within a week or two. Reinforcements should be in land within 13 days and then they will start moving. Will you be able to hold on?"

"If we don't suffer massive losses, we should be fine," Lelouch said. "But those reinforcements should come. We cannot spend more than two weeks without having to worry."

Schneizel nodded. "Supplies?"

"Part of the reason I called you. Aside from food, I will require some necessities for the operational of knightmare frames. I will send you the list," Lelouch said. "I assume they will come via plane and we'll have to collect them…"

"Yes," Schneizel said. "I will try to send everything within two to four days… don't count today."

Lelouch nodded. "I read of an interesting bomb on the catalogue of weapons we have. It was called an experimental bomb that can destroy hundreds of frames…"

"We don't have it," Schneizel said. "You want test it?"

"I want to avoid a battle that will cause me to lose frames when there is still an enemy out there and with reinforcements still a bit away." Lelouch said with a frown. "I will hear from you regarding the supplies once I have sent the list."

"And I hope to hear more good news," Schneizel said with a smile.

"You are going to make a show of my achievements once I have sent you all the details, aren't you?"

"Nothing hurtful," Schneizel said calmly. "I'm trying to get the EU to get back on the negotiating table. It should be demoralizing should it be documented that an inexperienced Britannian Prince secured a convincing victory against a force bigger than his," Schneizel said. "Perhaps even father will see it and arrange a medal for you when you return home…"

Lelouch snorted. "Yeah, right," he said sarcastically.

"Father rewards those who please him, brother," Schneizel said.

"And equally rewards those who displease him." Lelouch said. "We will talk, Schneizel."

"I will be waiting on your report."

Once the connection went offline, Lelouch closed his eyes. Without even opening them, he spoke. "Villetta," he said. "Eavesdropping?"

"No," Villetta quickly said. "I was coming to you and then I heard you speaking…"

"Next time, don't just stand there. If you think its private, turn back, if you want to come in, you are free to do so," Lelouch said before opening his eyes. "How much did you hear?"

"Only the last part…"

"I see," Lelouch said before falling silent. "I'm going to rest. Please complete the report of our events so far. I will look at it later…"

 **End of chapter**

 **Well, that completes this chapter. I will try to upload chapter 11 next week Friday latest. I have already written most of it. I just need to complete a couple of things and edit before posting it.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage**


	11. Chapter 11

Villetta stole a glance towards Lelouch. She had finished the report he had asked her to do but it had been a couple of minutes now since he started reading it and he has just been silent. She was still a bit bothered by how things ended last time because she had been caught eavesdropping. It hadn't been truly intentional. She didn't do things like that. She would certainly not try to listen in on other people's conversations, especially members of the Imperial Family. She could forfeit her life. She didn't think that Lelouch would go that far but she still worried over his silence on the matter.

The Eleventh Prince continued reading Villetta's report as he responded without even casting the woman a look. "Speak your mind, Villetta. Nothing will get solved if you just continue staring at me," he said calmly.

Villetta looked away for a moment, realizing she had been caught. She still steeled herself and then spoke. "About the incident earlier; I'm really sorry about it," she said. "I assure you; it won't happen again."

"I should hope so," Lelouch said before falling silent. He then lifted his head and glanced at Villetta before speaking once more. "Were you thinking that I asked you to do this report because I was punishing you? If I really wanted to punish you, I could have sent you to Jeremiah, alone and then have you take the front lines in the next battle."

Villetta blinked, those words came out smoothly you would fail to realize just how cold the intention was. That was just a way to kill her without doing it himself. It made her realize that he could do something like that if he really wanted someone dead and the same could be done to him if the military generals wanted him dead. She was thankful that Lelouch didn't look like the type of person who would do something so cruel. But then again, he just said it as if he was greeting her. You could never know with members of the Imperial family.

"I just thought perhaps you were displeased with my actions. And I wanted to correct it."

"How?" Lelouch asked with a stare. "You can't undo what has already happened. How would you try to correct it, Villetta?" The Prince asked with curiosity, his eyes leaving the woman before him.

Villetta swallowed hard. She hadn't thought that far. She had simply been thinking about trying to talk to him about it. She ended up saying something she shouldn't have said without much thought. "Anything you want me to do. As long as it ensures that you can trust me again."

Lelouch raised an eye brow. He would never say something like that to Milly. She would make him miserable and he would live everyday to regret ever uttering those words. "If I asked you to go lock that door strip for me, would you do it?" He asked with narrowed eyes, a cold smile on his lips.

This just reminded Villetta of the laughter she heard from him when the enemy had fallen into his trap. She felt a cold chill run down her spine.

Seeing her stiff posture, Lelouch put on an amused look on his face. "You shouldn't say such things without thinking deeply. You'll end up being forced to do things you don't want to do, things that make you think military isn't worth anything," he lectured. "I had you do the report because it has been my intention. I want you to get used to drafting them. Ordinarily and when I can, I will handle them but when I am not able to do any report, those duties will be left for you."

Villetta blinked once. She hadn't thought things would become like that. Lelouch did seem content to do all the planning himself.

"I chose you for this job and let Jeremiah do the other things because he cannot do it. Maybe he can, but Jeremiah isn't measured and relaxed as you are."

Villetta smiled. "Thank you, Your Highness," she said. "I will give my best."

"I expect nothing less," Lelouch said. "Your report is good. I just made a couple of tweaks there and then. I will mail you the draft I have sent to Schneizel." He faced the woman for a moment before staring back at his skin. "I want you to do something for me. You should return soon."

"You want me to go somewhere?" Villetta wasn't sure about leaving his side. They were far away from home and there was no telling what would happen if things became heated in her absence.

Lelouch nodded. "You will take two soldiers from the first Squad. I want you to go get the energy fillers of the mobile bases stationed for the 2nd and 3rd squads. The maintenance team has something bigger than this for this base."

"What do you want to with them?" Villetta asked curiously.

"The fillers are made of Sakuradite and the material is highly explosive," Lelouch said with a smile. "This is my first battle and I need to win it at all costs. If we have to sacrifice many facilities of this base, then so be it. If we end up taking down the enemy, then all is well. As long as we have communications, it shouldn't be a problem. That aside, I have already mapped out the place we are going to use as a battlefield."

Villetta stared at the Prince for a moment before shaking her head. "I will get to it," she said standing up.

Lelouch watched her leave before getting up. He walked towards the control center and stared at the screen for a long moment before putting on a expressionless mask. He made the call to Cornelia. She had sent him a message saying she needed to speak to him. The woman was not present. She had gone into battle but would return within two to three hours. He waited for three hours, and Cornelia called.

She was staring at him curiously. Lelouch figured she had yet to be told anything about his activities. He had only spoken to Schneizel only a couple of hours ago.

"I was worried when I called and Jeremiah said you had been away but still didn't come back to me," Cornelia said.

Lelouch realized, she was alone. He didn't really need this from her though. He has been fine on his own and he didn't need her to start mothering him like a woman possessed. He wasn't as naïve and delicate as Euphemia. Their younger sister did need to be protected but Cornelia still needed to allow her to grow. "There was no network range to contact you," he said.

He had been in battle. Well, he could still contact her if he wanted to do it. He just had to contact the control center and have them connect him to her. But in battle, it was not needed. Not unless there was an emergency and he was calling for backup.

"While I appreciate that you care for me, I wish you would stop treating me like a child, Cornelia. I'm not in the same bracket as Euphie. I have been playing the role of an adult for quite long. You need to understand that I have grown and can take care of myself. If I'm struggling, I will call you," Lelouch continued speaking in a very stern tone.

"Grown?" Cornelia stared at Lelouch with an expressionless look on her face. "Is this why there are even rumors of marriage? Is this why you were seen with that Ashford girl?"

Lelouch frowned thinking about that incident. He really didn't want to think about it because it would take him to that moment where Milly kissed him. He has been doing well ignoring it. It also helped that there were many things that were of priority within his mind. "You are talking about what happened in Area 11," he said in a thoughtful tone. "Well, I will have to think about it…"

"You're still a child Lelouch! What do you know about marriage and relationships?"

Lelouch smiled at this. He wanted to remind her that she was going to hit her thirties soon and she had yet to even start any romantic relationships, but he held himself. Cornelia was not the one to lecture him about such relationships since she had no success to speak of it. "Then, sister, are you going to teach me about it?"

Cornelia stared at Lelouch for a long minute, wondering if he was joking or not. When she couldn't tell, she spoke, drifting away from the subject because she had no response. "How are you doing in defending the borders?" She asked.

"So far, so good. I returned here because we managed to win our first engagement without suffering massive losses. The EU forces should take a couple of days to gather themselves and regroup before thinking of attacking again," Lelouch said in a calm tone.

Cornelia thought about it for a moment before asking. "Shouldn't you attack while they are still regrouping?"

"They will be most vigilant now," Lelouch said with a shake of his head. "Considering that their frames specialize in long range combat, if we are attacking them in their defensive formation, we will lose many frames. They are easier to take apart when they are attacking."

"If they get reinforcements?"

Lelouch shook his head. "Not more forces from France. The EU will not send many more forces when they know we are not actually trying to get into Spain and but only trying to defend Portugal. Besides, Schneizel is possibly holding dialogues with them as this continues. Reinforcements will come from the other unit headed towards South of the Portuguese border. But I am expecting this. Britannian reinforcements should also be arriving soon," Lelouch said. "How long till you are done?"

"We are still busy repelling our opponents out of Morocco. This war has caused many people to flee from the country. No one is crossing the sea because there is also war in Spain." Cornelia responded with a shake of her head. "But we should be done within a few days."

Lelouch nodded. "Then I wish you continued success, sister."

"You too, Lelouch. If there is anything, please let me know."

"Of course," he said before disconnecting the line.

 **Four Days Later**

The past days had been nothing but considerable silent. Villetta was not complaining. She had even forgotten that she was at war. Jeremiah hadn't reported anything dangerous. Well, in the past days. But this day, Sergeant Michael had called. They had to move once more. It was going to be another hell of a battle for survival and this one would be more problematic than the last. Yet, they had to go. They had to face their next opponents and grace the battlefield with victory in thought. Lelouch had made it clear, defeat for him and their Platoon was not an option. Defeat meant death for her, for Lelouch, it meant being captured by the EU, if he was unlucky not to die.

Villetta had come to conclude that although to commoners' princes lived the high life of luxury and always looked good, it was really not as it looked. The life was a struggle. If Lelouch was captured, there was no way the Britannian military was going to stop war just to save his life. He was just one prince out of many. He could always be replaced. Britannia had already invaded Japan while he was still within the nation.

She shook her head, clearing the thoughts and continued to listen to Sergeant Michael.

"…coming from the southern side. I haven't been able to get close enough to know what is happening in the camp, but they received reinforcements from the second unit and are planning to move. They are removing things in the camp to occupy somewhere closer to the border," the Sergeant said.

"They already know our goal is to ensure that they don't get into Portugal. But we have already moved into the enemy territory far than we had to. Keeping them away from the borders gave us a chance to attack, with mobility and a room to retreat. But once they get into the border, our only way of retreating is back into Portugal and we cannot have that," Lelouch said in a thoughtful tone. "How many frames are we talking about?"

"From my count, not more than 105 panzer-hummels," Michael said.

Lelouch adopted a thought look on his face. They could expect a second wave of attack with this. "Stay on-guard Sergeant, I will contact you soon," he said before switching off the line.

Villetta turned towards Lelouch; he didn't look bothered that they were going to face more frames this time once more. Their numbers were about eighty, the enemy still outnumbered them. And they had no more frames to spare. It was still not going to be an easy battle. But they had done it before with a larger force, they could do it again. "You're also joining this one?"

"I'm thinking about it," he said in thought. "Well, I guess I don't have much of a choice. If this mobile base could move further ahead, then I would move. But I can only go south and north, further ahead, there is no way for it to move. I want to be closer to the battlefield."

Villetta nodded. This time around, she would have to be more vigilant in ensuring that she watched his back – it was going to be much more dangerous than last time around. "At least you should take a Gloucester; it will be for you own security," she suggested.

Lelouch faced the woman for a moment before nodding. "We will leave in an hour… Schneizel said he would talk to the government of Portugal about watching our backs, so we can rest a little easy about an attack from behind," he said. "But he still hasn't said anything about the supplies I requested," he said.

"Once we use explosives in this road, we won't have anymore… and we are running out of energy fillers for the knightmare frames. The 80 frames are all we have. If we suffer heavy losses, we may have to think about retreat," Villetta said. "But we should be able to handle this battle without a problem and the next, but anywhere after that, I don't think we can survive. Food is still available; there are just a couple of things missing but nothing serious."

"If something happens to our supplies, we have a problem," Lelouch said with a slight shake of his head. "Go brief 1st Lt. Morris about the situation and then prepare for our departure. We will leave the maintenance squad with eight frames to protect the base if something comes," he said.

"Right away," Villetta said.

Lelouch did not move until Villetta was gone. Once she was out of the way, he picked up his cell; still no bars. The military handed out phones were the only ones registered to the networks they were using. He put away the cell leaned back to his sofa. He looked thoughtful for a couple of minutes before sitting up straight. He opened his laptop and video called Nina.

"Your H-highness," she greeted him with surprise. "I thought you are in war in Europe," she said.

"I am," Lelouch said calmly. "I wanted to see if you were able to receive everything you wanted."

Nina nodded slowly. "Yes," she said. "Milly's grandfather was also here. He didn't say much though. But I do have everything…"

"Good," Lelouch said. "When can I expect to see results?"

Nina blinked. She hadn't thought that he would be asking about results so soon. She did have a couple of theories she has been working on for a while, she just needed to run some tests. "A month," Nina said a bit slowly. "I can provide prototypes and experimental products. But I'll need to get them tested…"

Lelouch looked thoughtful for a moment. He knew what she meant by that. She needed a testing site. He could not afford to have things tested in Area 11 without people knowing. He shook his head; there were a couple of islands within the Area that didn't have people within them. "I will make arrangements for you to be taken to a testing site. You have to be careful though. The Area has terrorist groups; we wouldn't want them getting their hands on my toys."

"I understand," Nina said.

 **The Following Day**

Confidence was a good thing; Lelouch didn't hate seeing the men smiling broadly upon his entrance to their camp once more. He gave them the confidence they would pull through. He had told them that they would make it and he would lead them to victory. So, he has done an excellent job. They could trust him. They would execute his orders, not just because they were ordered to do so but because they now believed that his methods would bring them victory, it would save their lives. It wasn't a bad thing to experience. He had been right, at the end of this; they would be chanting his name.

Lelouch smiled at the thought. He would have to thank Schneizel for making this come true. The Prime Minister may not have anticipated the larger than expected EU forces that they ended up fighting, but he had certainly pulled strings to get him to this battleground. Some vultures would have certainly agreed to it simply because they wanted to see Lelouch vi Britannia fail. But he would not fail. He would prove many people wrong and he would return to Pendragon with victory and a resounding chorus from his men.

The Eleventh prince looked around the camp for a moment; he had only arrived with Villetta but they had to move out. Sergeant Michael had sent him a coded message informing that the EU forces were on the move and that there were more likely on the way. It hadn't been a surprising story to him, Lelouch had expected for this. But the EU would not move all its forces because it didn't want to leave the Southern undefended even though it was now certain that Britannia had no interest in advancing into Spain.

Lelouch cleared his thoughts as his highest ranking subordinates surrounded him after he stepped out his frame. "There is not much time to spend looking around," he said to them. "As we speak, the EU forces are moving towards us," he said. "They grow closer to the borders and we don't want them here. Our offence has been the best form of defense, and since they are now attacking, we must counter attack."

"Their chosen place of battle is a problem," Albert said with a frown. "From what Sergeant Michael said, they are choosing a clear path that doesn't have trees to move. It will be difficult to get in behind them without them decorating our frames with holes."

Lelouch nodded to this. "They now realize that they can't do anywhere near the woods. Knightmare frames can't even move freely within the woods, but we have been able to move around because our frames are much more mobile. Even so, they now know that we seem to have this place locked up with traps, so they don't want to get caught up in another surprise."

Jeremiah frowned at this. It was going to be a really difficult battle. They could not get out of this one without losses. Well, this was war. Sometimes there was just no avoiding it. They had to face it and they could not just leave them be because they would go through the orders of Portugal. If they travelled and managed to go through Lisbon, or anywhere near, it was game over for Britannia. They would have to depart this nation and his lord would be blamed for the humiliation.

"We are really going to have a go at it this time around," the noble said. He still grinned though. It was going to be a true knightmare frame battle. He would not run from that. He did love a good battle and this time around, he was going to run riot. The men would not mock him anymore for having been forced to eject from his frame after it was heavily damaged. He would show them the real Jeremiah Gottwald.

"Yes," Lelouch agreed. "There is no way to avoid it. Bu this time, for us to win, you will have to pull your weight," he said. "Major Albert, I don't have to be saving you again, this time." He said.

The Major managed a smile despite the situation. "That was a fatal blunder on my part… it will not happen again," he vowed. "I will be the one watching your back this time. Since it is going to be dangerous, we will have to do it," he said while clenching his right fist.

"Sergeant Michael says there are around 105 knightmare frames that we must face," Lelouch while taking out small map. He pointed at a marked place on the map. "The EU isn't just using this route to get away from us, they chose a battleground that is suitable for their frames and they know we can't avoid them. Our unit cannot even move ahead on its own."

"No doubt Madrid as hundreds of frames waiting in line," Villetta said. "If we make the mistake of allowing them to pass and move ahead, we will only become surrounded."

"So they are forcing us to come to them while holding out their weapons," Albert said. "I'm feeling a lot happier to crush them at their own game. They know if they see us from a distance, they will just enter into a defensive formation and shoot us," he said.

"And we still will crush them, Major," Lelouch said with a smirk. His eyes focused on the map. "Given their current trajectory, they are going to pass by here." He said pointing at a marked spot. "There is a river that stretches for a couple of kms… and the only way to the other side is through a bridge."

"Are we going to destroy it?"

Lelouch shook his head. "They won't be stupid to go through it without expecting something to happen. They will probably inspect it before crossing and if they find something curious, they are not going to cross. We can't afford to waste the little explosives we have. So, we will hide just after the bridge. The road after is surrounded by a large forest. We will be waiting for them there."

"But this is in Portugal," Jeremiah noted.

"Yes," Lelouch said. "On the other side of the bridge, it is a barren ground and if we attack there, we will get slaughtered. We have to let them enter to be able to handle them."

Albert stared at the map; this was just another risky move. Because they were letting an enemy that had more frames than them, they had no option than to win. If they lose, the EU forces would freely move deeper into Portugal. As far as he was concerned, there was no other bigger force that was waiting for enemies to reach. Britannia was still away. "The enemy still outnumbers us, I'm sure you have way to remedy this?"

"Of course," Lelouch said. "In total, we have 72 frames but we also have tanks. So far, we have not been using them. This time around, we are going to use them. Our attack us going to come from three directions: the front on both left and right sides. We only had 10 shields in our arsenal, so only 10 frames will take the frontal attack along with the 16 tanks we have,"

"But wouldn't they be expecting it?"

"Most probably," Lelouch said. "But it does not matter. They are not going to do anything especial. They know they have the numbers on their side and since they already know we are going, their weapons will be waiting for us," he said. "The one of the frames will be pulling a tank that will be carrying something that should wipe out at most 40 frames at once. When that happens, we have time to attack get closer to them."

"When closer, we have the advantage," Jeremiah smirked. "When do you think this will happen?"

"Afternoon, the day after tomorrow," Lelouch said in thought. "Britannian reinforcements should be a day away by then. They'll probably avoid flying them to avoid missiles," he said. "We should at least expect them to engage in battle within four to five days."

"Will we be done once we do this?"

"It will depend on how Schneizel is handling things with the EU," Lelouch said. "But we will probably be done."

"Then we go home big!" Major Albert said. "I haven't been home in quite some time."

Lelouch had forgotten that these people have been around here for about a year now. They were soldiers. They signed up for this. You did not become a soldier not knowing that you would be forced to be away from your family. "Then let us survive this with as many as we can, Major."

"We are not only going to survive, we will also crush the EU," Albert said with a determined look on his face.

"As long as you don't get lost in thought, Major," Jeremiah reminded the man.

"I don't need to hear that from you," Albert said to Jeremiah. "But if you are saying that; I hope this time around, you will be able to protect your frame, Lord Jeremiah."

Seeing this, Lelouch just shook his head and looked up into the sky. He hoped things worked well in Schneizel's side. He really didn't want any nasty surprises waiting for them. He was banking a lot on those supplies to come. But it didn't look like it would matter much anyway since reinforcements would be coming to join them in just a couple of days.

 **Two Days Later**

The Panzer-Hummels were moving in a group of four, all groups tasked with guarding each side. All four sides were being watched. The damn Britannians attacked cowardly and were primed to ambush them. They had done it once and then led them into a trap. This time around, they would not fall for the tricks. They would be on guard and fill those damn Britannians with bullet holes. Pedro wanted nothing more kill some Britannians. They had been humiliated before. Their commander had been forced to beg for leniency from high command after the generals threatened to strip him of his rank for such careless manner of fighting and losing many frames in such a short time.

The pressure was on them. Pedro could admit though. The enemy had come up with a better way to handle the bigger force. The EU had known the Britannians would not send a bigger force. Information had come a little too late, but it had come and frames had been scrambled in order to protect Spain against an invasion. The damn autocrats didn't care about Portugal. They merely wanted to see Britannia leave the shores of Europe and would not be tolerating failure. They were going to be blamed if they got screwed once more.

Pedro was confident though, things would work out this time around. He was confident. This strategy worked to their advantage. The Brits had better frames than them, but they still held the advantage in the long range combat.

"They are here," a voice spoke through the radio.

Pedro looked at the monitors in front of him. They had just stepped out of the bridge. There was a large road ahead of them. This was once a border control place. But this border was hardly used. The border in the north regions was the one military occupied. "About time," he said with a grin.

The EU frames halted and the weapons were held out, ready to fire. Pedro was leading in the charge in the front line. The orders had been simple: don't break formation and regardless of what happens, don't look the other side – focus on your battle unless help on the flanks is requested. If not, ignore everything and they were not supposed to break formation.

"I'm surprised they'd attack us though," a man said.

"They don't have a choice," Pedro said calmly. "Our route forced them to move and they can't ignore us. They couldn't face us back then in a barren terrain; we would have destroyed them." He warily looked at the screen before speaking. "Be on guard, we don't know what they have on their sleeve."

"I call dibs on the Prince," another soldier spoke through the warrior. "How much is the reward for being the one to capture him?"

"None."

"Are you serious? I thought they'd at least give something for capturing a big fish. The Britannians would certainly be more willing to talk if we captured on of them."

"If he is here, we will capture him… if he is at their base, he will die," Pedro said. But of course, if it is the latter, they would not openly admit it. They would pretend that he was alive just to force Britannia's hands.

"Here they come!"

It was not frames that came out of the woods; it was tanks. Pedro counted them, they were fifteen of them and his radar could pick up signals of frames surrounding them. The damn Brits did have something planned for them. He closed his eyes for a moment; he ought not to worry about what was going to happen to the flanks – the others would deal with it.

 **With Lelouch**

Vi Britannia looked through his screens for a moment. It was just as anticipated; the Europeans were indeed waiting for them. It would not have been bad if they had ended up not being prepared to face them. Lelouch would not have complained that his prediction had been wrong – it would have made things much simpler had things been different. But they were not and their opponents had their weapons loaded and ready to fire at will. It was indeed going to be a bruising battle. He would have to sacrifice up to 10 frames just to earn himself an opening that could wipe out many enemy frames.

"Jeremiah," Lelouch called the man who was leading the charge on the left flank.

"My Lord…"

"Are you in position?"

"Yes; we are ready to move when you command," Jeremiah said. "There isn't a big distance from here to them, so, we should be able to get them before they destroy our frames."

"You're not going to engage them in close-combat for now, Jeremiah," Lelouch repeated those words he had said moments ago. "You are just going to draw their attention and we make a move. Be ready to withdraw when I give the order and don't get too close. We don't want anything failing us at a critical moment."

"Understood," Jeremiah responded in a firm tone.

Lelouch turned away from his side and then turned to Villetta for a moment. She was going to lead the charge the moment things became heated up. He didn't need to say anything. She was more measured than Jeremiah. "Major Albert," He called the Major.

"Lt. Colonel," Albert responded.

"The enemy is waiting for you," Lelouch said. "Order your men to move with speed. Hurry it up. No slow movements or we fail this mission."

Albert didn't need to be told how that would affect the men's morale. If they failed the first part, which was critical, it was all over. Even if they end up winning, it would not be a victory that leaves then proud.

"Understood!"

 **Back with Pedro**

The captain was curious as to why the tanks were not drawing weapons towards them. He could not just open fire just like that. But he was prepared. He readied his guns when the tanks moved into a formation – four lines – with enough space in between for frames to slip through. When Sutherlands holding shields slipped through those lines, Pedro made the call.

"Open fire!"

He realized, the enemy on the left flank also made a move. But he did not turn – it would be against orders. It would be against what he had been directed to do. The five frames in the front line were shooting, just not to break formation.

He cursed loudly when the tanks stopped moving and only started to fire their heavy weapons towards them. Out of anger, he turned his weapons towards a tank and shot multiple bullets towards it. But before he could turn it into flames, the Sutherlands moved in front of the tanks, their shields blocking their paths.

"Cheating bastards!" he roared furiously because the shields were holding firmly and gaining on them.

When one frame started to move out of formation, his eyes snapped towards it. "Stay in formation, soldier!" He shouted.

The Sutherlands with shields reached them within a minute but then they revealed something. One of them was pulling a tank. The frame then moved to the sides. Pedro pointed his guns towards the tank but he saw the metal shield flying towards him. He opened fire on it, tearing through it in anger.

"Withdraw!" Albert roared.

The shields were already worn out and as the Sutherlands retreated, they were showered with heavy fire. Two were forced to eject. One frame then stayed behind and the rammed the frame into the enemy frames before the pilot ejected from the frame.

 **Earlier**

"We are not going to get out of this free, are we Lord Jeremiah?" A soldier asked the commander of the squad.

As if the soldier could see him, Jeremiah shook his head. But they still had to do this to be able to get an opening. Even if they manage to get close, their numbers would reduced and that would be dangerous considering that the EU forces were already more to what they had. "Yes, but when this works, we will gain a greater advantage and win this battle," he said confidently.

"Then let us win this!"

"Yes!"

"Don't get too excited," Jeremiah warned the soldiers. "Sergeant James, are you in position? Major Albert is in position to move. Once he does so, we have to move in as well. But remember, we must not be too close."

"Ready, sire," James responded.

"Lord Jeremiah," another soldier called the Margrave. "If we win this, I am going to kiss his Highness!"

Jeremiah had to laugh at this. It was a woman saying this. The atmosphere was something else in this place. Soldiers were the liveliest people. He was indeed in the right place. "Private Elizabeth, are you sure about that?"

"Positive!" the private responded firmly.

"We will hold you onto that!" the others joined in on this.

"Major Albert is moving," Jeremiah cut in before anything could be said by the private. "Move out men!"

Five Burais armed with assault riffles charged forward while the others remained in position. They were moving in a zig zag formation to avoid going in straight to receive fire.

Upon entrance, the Panzer-Hummels started shooting at them. But because they were not moving straight, it was harder to hit.

 **Back with Pedro**

"Britannia scum!" Pedro shouted furiously after shooting the shield away from him. His guns pointed at the frame that had rammed the tank on them. The moment he opened fire, the pilot ejected.

"Shit!" He shouted furiously. "How many did we lose?"

"Just two, but we are running low on ammo. It is only the first line though," a soldier responded. "Umm, captain, why are they retreating?"

The question made Pedro halt. Why indeed. Why had someone been pulling tank to them? Obviously they hadn't even bothered trying to really attack with the frames. On other side, they were only dancing around while shooting at them. Last time, the Brits had played around with explosions. What was it this time? Wait explosions?

His eyes widened at the realization. Orders be damned. "We need to-!" A missile slammed into chest of his frame before he could finish speaking. The frame burst. The last thing the captain saw was the tank bursting into flames.

Boom!

The tank exploded into a loud boom that tore through it, raising a small shockwave. The blast engulfed the front unit, causing the frames to explode. Five more frames at the heart of the group were cut within the blast's radius.

Seeing the glorious explosion, Lelouch could not help but laugh. "It would have been better if it exploded at the heart," he said to no one in particular.

"Should we move?" Villetta asked in her Gloucester, her lance stabbed to the ground and machine gun safely stored. She was ready for action.

"Yes," Lelouch said. It would have been cool if he had given the order in a more dramatic way. He smiled at the thought, since when did he think like that? Perhaps it was just fitting this way.

"Move out!" Villetta ordered as the Gloucester moved towards the road. The enemy was disoriented, unorganized. The explosion had disturbed their formation. It had caught them off-guard and they had lost many frames.

Villetta was quick to engage. She did not show mercy as he lance was driven straight into the chest of the Panzer-Hummel in front of her. She then kicked it backwards. When she received fire from behind, she twisted around and then the lance flew straight towards the frame shooting her. The frame was unable to dodge it and the lance pierced through the frame's right shoulder.

She got hold of her machine gun and started shooting the frame while rushing towards it. She retrieved her lance before twisting her frame once more.

She released slash harkens from the Gloucester. They hit the next target before she started pulling. Her advanced frame pulled the frame towards her and before it could reach her, the lance was driven through the frame's head before being pinned to the ground. Villetta stomped on the frame's chest to make sure it stayed down.

The only Chaos Mines left now were the ones fitted on the Gloucester. After this, they would not have any more. Still, the enemy was still at large. Villetta moved back slightly and hurled the Mine towards the EU forces. It released its deadly beams quickly and Villetta added to this by holding her machine gun to shoot towards the enemy. She destroyed six frames in total.

 **With Jeremiah**

The margrave cursed as a bullet him his frame on the shoulder. Fighting like this against frames who were no good at short distance combat had its advantage. He could do something like this: he released both slash harkens and caught a panzer-Hummel. He then pulled the threads with both hands and twisted around. This forced the frame to hit other frames as it moved around. It hit three frames, causing them to fall over. The margrave retrieved his harkens and then opened fire on the three downed frames.

Jeremiah moved towards another opponent and twisted around it before grabbing the right gun of the frame. He forcefully tore it off, before slamming it to the frame, causing it to fall down. He took his machine gun and started shooting, causing the frame to burst.

"Lord Jeremiah," James called his commanding officer.

"What?" Jeremiah said as he moved his frame. He got shot and was forced to hide behind an enemy frame. Friendly fire. It led to it with the man who had shot him, shooting holes through his colleague.

Jeremiah then grabbed the frame in front of by its shoulders before kicking it from behind. He then got hold of his machine gun and started firing at the back of the frame. He stopped shooting listen to James.

"Umm, you didn't tell me that Villetta was merciless and that good!" James said.

Jeremiah took his eyes towards Villetta. "Damnit!" he cursed. "She is taking out more frames than me!" He then lunged towards more frames.

James blinked at this. And then shook his head. He may as well count the scores as well. But damn, these Gloucesters were some fine toys. Their mobility was great and against Panzer-Hummels, it was not a fair fight. They were crushing them.

So far so good. Lelouch was happy. He knew the moment they were able to get close, they would be dealing this much damage. The Gloucesters performed better when in short distance combat. The Panzer-Hummels were no match for them. He would have to thank Schneizel for putting these frames in their arsenal. It was possible that if it was not for him, he would not have been able to get his hands on them.

Even though he was satisfied with how things were going, he decided to enter the fray. He not want to lose more frames than he would like when he did not know what was going to happen tomorrow.

He tapped in the radio. "Just a few more to go. Don't lose ground. Continue as you are!" He said to his men before diving into the battlefield.

He was still on a Sutherland. It was better to have the experienced and more effective soldiers to handle it. He would get his own frame soon. But for now, he had to give away the best to the best. It was more of a test to his leadership qualities than his piloting skills.

Lelouch ensured the riffles were fully armed before standing in a distance. He would be offering cover to his soldiers.

With Villetta

Villetta was a little glad that Lelouch was keeping his distance. With him on the field, she would not be able to fight freely. She would have to focus on him as well. It would be disastrous if something happened to him and she was unable to do anything to avoid it.

Her thoughts were cut off when a frame rammed into her from behind. She nearly fell down off balance but she pulled up her lance from the ground and shoved it backwards, piercing the frame on the left knee.

"Don't get too caught up in thought," Jeremiah said before shooting the frame at the back. "That's 11 for me!"

"Just 11?" Villetta asked. "I have 14!"

"What?" Jeremiah cursed. He twisted around to hunt down more enemies once more but his frame came to an abrupt halt. "Dammit!" He was out of energy.

"That's what you get for fighting recklessly," Villetta said.

"How are you still able to move?"

"I'm almost out of energy as well… but I move less and use the lance more to avoid consuming more energy," Villetta explained lightly. "Let me help you. We are almost done anyway," she said in a relaxed tone.

It didn't take long for the last Panzer-Hummel to fall. When it did fall, Jeremiah was the first to get out of his frame. "We did it, my Lord!" he said with happiness.

They had indeed done it. They were still standing and the enemy was down. They had won and this time around, it had been a huge battle. They had won nonetheless. This was their victory.

"Indeed, Jeremiah," Lelouch said with a wide grin on his lips. He moved his frame towards Villetta. "That was a good battle, Villetta. We should get you a promotion for that showing..."

Villetta smiled at this. She had fought well and she knew it. Lelouch had acknowledged it. She was happy that he indeed did acknowledge her work. The work was done. They had won and she had played her part. She hadn't just been sitting in the sidelines. She had been part of it. The men had been part of it. All of them. It was indeed a victory to remember.

She had suffered some losses in frames, but they had won.

"Thank you, your Highness." Villetta said, standing on Lelouch's right side.

"Someone is blushing."

Villetta glared at the direction of the voice but didn't say anything. She was glad when Lelouch didn't comment on it either. He got out of his frame, and stood atop of it. "When we started, I told you we would win. I told you I would lead you to victory if you followed my orders. You indeed did follow my orders, and here we are. I have brought you the victory I assured you!"

Jeremiah stepped up. At end of saying something pleasant, the emperors always raises his fists, and say… "All Hail Britannia!" The margrave roared.

"All Hail Britannia!" The men raised the fists of their frames.

"All Hail Lelouch!" Jeremiah was at it once more.

"All Hail Lelouch!"

Who would have thought that he would end up being the one to lead this chorus? Lelouch had seethed so many times when he heard the emperor shouting all hail Britannia after one of his speeches. But here he was. Fighting for Britannia and leading them to victory. Because of his actions, Britannia was being hailed. Tyranny was being hailed. Lelouch did not feel sick. He just hated Charles more. But it would lead to the downfall of that bastard. He brought him back, and when he has achieved his dream, Charles would regret this. He would regret calling him.

With his thoughts, Lelouch grinned slightly. He realized, one of the soldiers was filming the scene. With the men chanting his name, the camera was directed at him. It would be wonderful if that feed made it the news. Yes, Lelouch would delight in it and he would laugh seeing his enemies react to this.

"Is this fine?" Villetta asked of the filming.

"There is no harm," Lelouch said with a careless shrug.

Villetta simply nodded. If Lelouch said it was fine, then it was fine. She opened her mouth to speak but the lights started blinking with danger. She twisted her frame around and saw a missile heading straight towards them in speed. No, it was heading towards Lelouch. He was exposed now that he was out of his frame. Villetta's hands moved on reflex before her Gloucester jumped in behind the Prince. The missile slammed into frame's chest before exploding.

Jeremiah had been out of his frame, jumped towards Lelouch. He was behind the Prince when Villetta's frame exploded. The explosion blasted both Prince and his guard away from the frames and they crashed into the ground, with Jeremiah protecting Lelouch from the fall.

James reacted quickly by pointing his machine gun where the missile came from. He charged while shooting madly in anger. There was only the sound of people screaming before more soldiers moved into the scene.

"Did you get them?" Albert demanded.

There were four men lying on the ground. At least what remained of them. The bullets made for knightmare frames had done justice. James was not disgusted by the sight before him. "Yes, but they are not soldiers." He said.

Albert frowned upon learning this. "Check our surrounding and ensure there are no more enemies!" he ordered before turning towards Lelouch.

Lelouch felt a little disoriented, his head hurt a bit. Jeremiah was below him, holding his left shoulder, expression pained. He had been saved. He would have died there. That missile would have turned him into a shower of blood. Right in that moment of glory. It would have been a pathetic end of his existence. Lelouch cursed.

He managed to get on his feet. Major Albert was upon him. He looked relieved. "Are you okay, your Highness?" He asked.

Lelouch nodded his head. "Villetta: Make sure she lives…" he ordered.

"But your highness, you are bleeding," Major Albert said with a frown. The Prince was bleeding from the left side of his forehead. It was a major worry.

"Lelouch vi Britannia orders you, Major Albert, to ensure that Villetta is safe!"

Albert had no resistance. "Yes, your Highness!"

He quickly turned away from the prince and walked towards Villetta's badly damaged frame. His heart started beating quickly, seeing that the frame was badly damaged. He feared for her life. His eyes moved towards the cockpit. But he didn't make the move. He was a little afraid of what would happen if she was dead. Lelouch was going to murder someone. He had seen that look on the face. The Prince was not a happy commander.

The soldiers sped past Albert and went through Villetta's frame. They found her, eyes closed, a bit of a mess with blood covering her. It was not much blood. It could have been from the trauma. One of the soldiers checked her pulse. "She is alive!" he announced with happiness.

The relief washed all over the men.

"But she needs medical attention…"

The relief disappeared once more.

The soldiers gently pulled her out of the cockpit. And placed her on the ground. First aid arrived within a second and started treating her. Lelouch walked up to her and then asked the soldiers who made way for him. "How bad is it?"

"She will live. Her injuries are not bad. But she does have a few broken bones. We will have to get her to the base to ensure that she is safe."

Lelouch managed a small smile at this. "Good," he said. "We leave in 10 minutes. We are done here," he said. And then went back to Jeremiah. "Broken?"

"Dislocated," Jeremiah said with a small shake of his head. "But I will be fine. I just need to get it positioned and some pain killers."

"And a doctor," Lelouch said with a stare. "Unfortunately, we don't have pain killers with us. You'll have to soldier on, Jeremiah."

"I can assist with your shoulder, Lord Jeremiah," Albert said with a smile on his lips.

Jeremiah had an nervy feeling just seeing the smile on Albert's face. The man was surely going to take joy in seeing him suffer. That damned sadist. "I can go back to base with this."

"Oh, Lord Jeremiah is afraid of a little pain," Albert said with an amused look on his face.

"I'm not!"

"Then let me help you."

Lelouch shook his head seeing this. A moment ago, things would have taken a different turn. He would have been in a dangerous situation. He would have been dead. There was no protection. A missile would have ended him, right in the moment of glory. He was still alive though. This was truly going to make quite the story. And he had to thank Villetta for saving him. She had to live past this day. She had to. She had done him great service.

The Prince stumbled a bit but before he could hit the ground, someone caught him. "I'm fine," he said.

"You're still bleeding, Your Highness. You must have hit the ground with your head," a soldier with first aid said as he looked over to the gash on his head.

"I don't feel anything."

"Adrenaline, perhaps…" He did not add that the Prince almost died a moment ago. "Let me stitch this for you to stop the bleeding. But we do need to have this washed and bandaged properly."

Lelouch settled down and turned his eyes towards Jeremiah and shook his head. The man had reacted faster. He was his guard alright. But so was Villetta. Perhaps he could reward her by officially knighting her. Even Cornelia would agree with this. Of course, she was not going to be told about the incident until they were back in the island. She would leave her duties and come here or order him to leave his post.

"Celebrations almost turned into tears," Lelouch said to no one in particular.

"The timing of that was unpleasant," James said. "But we are all happy that you are alive, your Highness. We have achieved something tremendous because of you."

Albert nodded in agreement. "This has been quite an experience and I hope to serve with you again."

"Hopefully," Lelouch said. "You have also done me well by following my orders. But of course orders mean nothing if there are no skills to carry them out. The strategy may be good, but if those who carry it out are not good enough, there will be no results. You have done me proud as well. This was my first assignment but it has been enjoyable… well except for the last part," he said with a smile.

"Indeed," Albert said. "That would have ruined everything… but who are those people?"

"Most probably the same who took out Major Fredric. We will know more when we get back to base." Lelouch said standing up. "Contact Michael and tell him his mission is over. He can return along with us."

Albert stepped inside his knightmare frame and switched on everything. He tapped on the radio to try to contact Michael but there was another message that had him dreading for the worst.

"Your Highness," Major Albert started in a hollow tone. "Our base was attacked…"

 **End of chapter**

 **I will start by thanking everyone who reviewed in the last chapter. Umm, I'm going to trying to post a chapter or two every month if possible. Have been in the mood to write, hopefully, I'll do a couple of chapters.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage**


	12. Chapter 12

Bad news after the other: he had just escaped death thanks to Villetta and Jeremiah, and now there was this. If there was a god, it was now safe to bet that this god was truly working against him. He had worried that such an event could occur. He had bothered sending Fredric to that side because he didn't want such things to occur. But the Major had been killed and the last surviving member was missing in action. And now this. He had trusted too much on Schneizel to work on the government to make things happen. He should have just solved things himself when he was informed that Fredric had been killed.

Because the enemy didn't have frames, he had thought that he could just move things safely. But these people without frames had nearly ended his miserable life. Things could not be any worse than this. He could not even contact the base to hear what was happening. As things stood, they were running blind. And he still needed to get Villetta medical attention because she did need it. It was an infuriating situation that should have never been allowed to happen.

He was careless and this was what had happened. But Lelouch would not let it happen again. No, this would never happen again. He would never expose his base of operations unless it was a strategy.

"My Lord," Jeremiah said over the radio to Lelouch in a calm yet strong tone. Lelouch had been silent since he gave the order for the men to move out. He had obviously been displeased about the situation. "Do you think the base still stands?" He asked cautiously.

It was likely that the base was still standing but the fact that they could not get any message through was troubling. Their supplies, everything was in that place. If they lost everything, they would have to ransack EU forces they have just defeated for their supplies because there would no way for them to survive. Schneizel had their general location, so obviously if he lost contact with them, he would try to send a military plane to look for them.

"We were informed that the enemy within this country did not have any knightmare frames. Major Fredric's group was able to confirm this and when I spoke to Schneizel, he assured me that things would be handled," Lelouch responded. "We left them operational knightmare frames. Hopefully, we don't find a disaster, Jeremiah."

It was hope now. Major Albert could not believe that this was happening. They won against an overwhelming force and this was what was happening. Bad news just could not stop coming. First, Lelouch was nearly killed and now their base was attacked. He just hoped they didn't arrive too little too late and that things were not as bad as everyone feared. Not all frames were still in good condition. Energy fillers were running low. Even frames in good condition would stop moving because they no longer have energy and there was still no word on the reinforcements.

"Let us hope that the situation isn't as bad as we all fear," Albert said as the frames raced through the terrain, heading towards the location of their base of operations.

"Have you been able to get to Michael?" Lelouch asked Albert. He still could not reach the Sergeant from the communications within his Sutherland.

"No," Albert said with a shake of his head. "There appears to be something wrong with the networks. It won't even connect. I don't know if it is because of the signal…"

"If our communication towers have been destroyed, we will have to think of a place we can get one," Lelouch said.

Albert frowned deeply. "That means heading back to Spain," he said. "But we would have no choice because we still don't know what awaits us in the towns. We at least know that we defeated the enemy. We can at least move freely without fear of being attacked."

"That is if they didn't send any more reinforcements," Jeremiah said bleakly.

Lelouch smiled. It was by no means a happy smile. "If that is the case, we are in trouble," he said. "But we must still be prepared for anything when we arrive there. If the enemy is there, we must be prepared to shoot. And show no mercy. But I want to at least have one we can question for information."

"Yes, my Lord!"

When the group finally did arrive at the base, they found a heavily damaged G-1 mobile base, there also appeared to have been a fire at the place. The working frames had formed a perimeter around the base for protection. The relief washed over the men learning that their base was still fine even though the commander's home was badly damaged.

The men quickly got out of their frames the wounded were taken to the medical camp for treatment. Lelouch did not hide his relief that things were not as he had feared. If he was not reserved, he would have jumped for joy. His men did not have the same reservations as him. They were certainly happy to be back to their base and to find almost all things operational.

"Well, something did happen," Major Albert said standing beside Lelouch, who was just standing beside his frame, watching everything happening around him.

"It does appear so," Lelouch said. "From the looks of things, they were probably after me because the mobile base was hit hard. Our network towers have also been destroyed. That explains why we could not get hold of them. No doubt it was people on foot. Almost the same as what happened in our battle. Without frames, it is easy to see why they were not detected quickly."

"So it was the same people who nearly killed you," Jeremiah said in anger. "I really hope that they were caught alive. I want to make one of them pay with my own hands. I cannot forgive anyone for targeting you, my Lord."

Major Albert just shook his head. Well, considering everything that they have been through, he too would not have been pleased to see something happen to the prince. But he was able to control his emotions far better than Jeremiah. "But why would they specifically target you? Your presence here was not made public was it?"

"No, but the EU managed to know about it," Lelouch said calmly as he walked towards the maintenance camp. "Once the EU knew about it, it became a problem and Schneizel revealed it to the public. Well, it doesn't do harm to kill the spawn of the man responsible for Britannia's expansion."

Being a member of the royal family had its troubles. It was not just all joys. It was troublesome for those in military. But surely, when you were as effective as Lelouch, you would have men throwing themselves in harm's way to protect you – Villetta had just done it.

First Lt. Morris welcomed them to the camp and prepared a place for them to relax. Albert was surprised to see that Michael was also around. But the Sergeant appeared to have been involved in a battle and was wounded. "I was worried about you," he said to the Sergeant who, had bandages on his upper body.

Michael smiled. "My equipment was damaged on my way back and when I came here, I got caught up in things," he responded calmly before turning to face Lelouch, who was now sitting on a chair, hands resting on a table. "Your Highness, it is good to see you are alive."

"Just barely," Lelouch said. "I was almost killed, but that is a story for later. Tell me what happened here."

Morris responded. "Missiles hit us when didn't expect it. By the time we reacted, they had already hit the communication tower and the mobile base. Alex, who had been chasing after them since his group was murdered, stopped from leaving in their car. When Michael joined in, we were able to stop them."

It was at least good that the man who had gone missing in action was now back safely. He had lost a number of men though. But this was still a problem for him. "Any alive?"

Morris shook his head. "They didn't allow us to catch them. The moment we hit their car, and realized they would not be able to get away, they committed suicide," he said.

Lelouch frowned. It sounded like something trained people would do. Something the Japanese would do very well. But without their communication tower, they could not contact the island. They were sitting here blindly and their supplies had yet to arrive. "Any causalities?"

"Thankfully no," Morris said. "But your mobile base has been damaged. Given our current state, it isn't something we can repair because we don't have the tools. We were able to salvage your laptop… well, it's harddrive. The machine itself was badly damaged by the explosion."

The laptop of his carried some important documents. If he had lost them, it would have been homework for him because he would have to redo some of the plans he had drawn. But with the drive still intact, he would get his documents. Lelouch could at least smile at this. "What of the energy filler? Is it fine?"

"Yes," Morris said. "You want to use it for his mobile base?" He asked pointing at Albert.

"I'm afraid it doesn't have the same comfort as yours, but if it can make your life easier, you can have it," Albert said.

"It is no longer about comfort, Major. For now, we have to worry about staying alive until reinforcements touch down in land. Have the base retrieved and brought back here." Lelouch ordered. "Sergeant Michael, you look injured, but I will need you to get in a frame and take 10 men with you. Lt. Morris will tell you what is destroyed in our communication tower. We need to get it back online. You will head to one of the EU bases and retrieve what is missing. If you can take the whole tower, I won't complain."

"This is nothing, Your Highness," Michael said. He understood the importance of getting their communication lines online once more. They did need to communicate with the island.

"I expect you to be back by tomorrow night, Sergeant. We can go for these days without communication. But we need the tower back online," Lelouch said. "Is there anything on the airstrip?"

"Some old equipment, but it's only for cellular."

Lelouch looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding his head. "Sergeant, leave when you are ready. Albert, ensure that we are secure and no more surprises occur. By that I mean a full sweep of our surrounding. Major Morris, I want a full inventory of our current supplies."

"What about me, My Lord?" Jeremiah asked.

Lelouch took out his phone and handed it to Jeremiah. "Go find a signal and call Schneizel. Tell him we are a having a little trouble with our communications but I will contact him soon once we get things online. And ask about our damn supplies. He should have delivered them already."

 **Later**

It was slightly dark when Jeremiah finally returned from his mission. Lelouch was happy that there were no activities in their camp. But he had rounded all his men around their base. It was for better protection and reaction time in case something ever happened. Albert had done a clean sweep and there were men checking around the place for anything moving. It would be like this until they do leave the place.

Lelouch was not concerned that the enemy knew their location. They could not afford to move far away from here. This was already their best location and moving would create a logistical problem. It would also drain their little resources and supplies.

He was already within the mobile base he had taken from Albert. The control center was small but it had the needed tools for communication and for the commanding job.

"Tell me you found a signal Jeremiah," Lelouch said to the Margrave.

Jeremiah was silent for a couple of moments before responding. "No, my Lord…" he said in a low tone, a shake of his head. "The tower was also destroyed. It looked like the people who came here started by destroying the tower there."

Lelouch frowned deeply. This was worrying. No doubt Schneizel would pick up that something was wrong. Yet, it did not change their situation. Things were bad. At any moment now, they would have to abandon this place. They didn't know what was coming for them or what was happening elsewhere. They were indeed blind as things stand. Schneizel was likely to be calm, but Cornelia would throw a fit. But then again, Schneizel was likely to lie to her to avoid any reckless moves. He would hold her to her place until he was able to contact them.

"We have to wait until Michael comes back. If it is all bad news, we will have to move to the location where reinforcements are supposed to arrive. Schneizel only knows our general location but if the EU learns that we are sitting duck, they might do something." Lelouch responded in a measured tone.

"Should I inform the men?"

"Let them remain ignorant of this one. They seem to be in a good mood tonight. Let us not ruin it," Lelouch said with a shake of his head. "Michael will return tomorrow."

"If he doesn't return?"

"We have no choice but to abandon this place," Lelouch said. "I will work out all possible scenarios and prepare our course of action. But for now, let us join everyone…" he said standing up from his seat.

The outside was lively. Lelouch had them restrict the fires to avoid being detected. It was night, a fire could easily be detected but compared to flares; this was safe. Perhaps it was paranoia, but Lelouch was not going to shoot up a flare. It might have been Britannians who even leaked his presence here to the EU. He was not a darling at home after all.

Lelouch joined a group of around 20 soldiers. Major Albert was not amongst them but James was there. They stood up and saluted when they saw him. "At ease, soldiers," Lelouch said calmly before being given a seat. He settled down in the group and stared at the small fire for a long minute before speaking. "You don't have to be silent because I am here. There was quite the chatter before we came here…"

"You were very loud with me," Jeremiah said. He could recognize the faces of the soldiers he led into battle.

"How is Villetta?" James asked.

"Recovering but she should be up tomorrow," Lelouch said.

James nodded with a smile. It was some good news. Well, not all was lost. There were challenges but they were hanging there. They were surviving. And they would make it out of here alive. For now, it was time to celebrate their victory. The Prince had said no alcohol since they didn't know what surrounded them – a little disappointing but everyone understood. "Private Elizabeth," he started with a grin.

The Private froze knowing where the conversation was going to go. She had said what she said in the heat of the moment. She hadn't thought that things would come to this point. "Please let it go, James," she begged.

"I remember correctly we asked you if you were serious and you said you were," another soldier said with a smile. "You are not going to back down are you?"

"What is this about?" Jeremiah asked curiously.

"Don't you remember the promise the private made before we entered the final battle? The kiss she promised to give?" A soldier said in a suggestive tone while trying not to look at Lelouch.

Seeing that some men were looking at him, Lelouch finally spoke. "Why does it look like it involves me? And what about the promises of a kiss?"

"I was just joking!" Private Elizabeth said. She was more afraid of Lelouch getting angry at her.

"I don't think you were," Jeremiah said with a shake of his head. "I was there. You did say you were serious. And now we have come out alive. Promises must be kept, Private. I did warn you that you must not make such promises without thinking through."

It involved Lelouch but Jeremiah was fine with it because it was nothing harmful. Besides, it would do well for the men's morale – it must have been dented by the events that occurred. If Lelouch showed them he was human, then the men were likely to be for him. He could do it just this once. It was about selling himself. He needed to drum up support in military. Every tactic had to be used to make it.

"Private Elizabeth, what was it that you promised?"

Elizabeth was silent for a moment before speaking while glaring at James. "I said if we made it out alive I would kiss you, your Highness!"

Lelouch looked around. Everyone was looking forward to it. He smiled. "Well, you promised," he started. "Come here, Private."

Elizabeth stood up like a robot and marched toward Lelouch. He motioned for her to lean in and she did. He whispered something to her that seemed to make her grin. She knelt before the prince and took his hand. She kissed it and then stood up, smiling wildly.

"There, I did it!" she said proudly while going back to her place.

"What?!"

"That is cheating!"

Jeremiah just laughed. He should have expected Lelouch to play it like that. His Lord certainly had ways to get out of tricky situations. He had simply denied the request while actually doing it.

"That was not a kiss you promised!"

"Which kiss did I promise, Albert? Are you sure you are not just having some lewd thoughts?" Elizabeth said.

"The Private said she promised to kiss me. There was no specific part of my body that she stated. Kissing my hand is a kiss." Lelouch said with a small smile on his lips.

 **The Following Day**

Villetta's eyes opened slowly. The ceiling was unfamiliar. But she was certain she was still alive. The last thing she remembered was moving into the path of a missile with a frame that had already been damaged from battle. She was sure she had saved Lelouch. She tried moving her hands and when she could, she breathed in relief – she was not in enemy territory. She was not captured. But the ceiling unfamiliar. She was not in the Eleventh Prince's mobile base. Perhaps she was somewhere within their base. Villetta smiled once when felt that she could feel her feet. Everything was still working. It would have been lost dreams if something had gone wrong.

"You are awake."

Villetta turned her eyes towards the woman who had spoken. She was in military uniform, Britannia's uniform. Her mind was fully at ease now. She tried to sit up and winced when she felt her chest hurt. She still forced herself to sit up though. "How long have I been out?"

"A full day."

Villetta nodded. She was fine. She wouldn't have been in this position had she stayed with the Purist Faction. But then again, the unit was likely dead by now. After Jeremiah left the unit, things turned bad. Kewell was unable to manage. It was not because he was stupid. Kewell was cold hearted and would do whatever needed to be done. But he had been angry. He had been too obsessed with Jeremiah's defection to think straight. For her own future, Villetta had decided to jump ship. She was now in a better position. She shook her head. Her desires should not get in the line of duty. She had not moved because she wanted something, she had just been trying to save the Prince.

Thinking of the black haired Prince, her eyes turned towards the woman standing beside her and asked. "Is His Highness alright?" She asked carefully.

"Yes, thanks to you," the woman responded with a smile. "Do you want to see him? If you are not moving too much, It should not be too bad for the stitches you have. Some movement will be good."

Villetta nodded her head but did not get out of the bed immediately. It was not because she was afraid to walk. What was she going to say to Lelouch? Should she just appear to him and say, 'Hey, I am awake.' She shook her head. Perhaps seeing him now wasn't the best option.

"You, know what, I think I will see him later."

"I will just go tell him you are awake. He has been coming to check up on you. But I do believe that he would be most relieved to see you walking on your own."

Villetta thought about it before deciding to get out of the bed. She was led into a small room. It was not as big and comfortable as Lelouch's old one. The Prince himself was lying on the couch, papers on his chest and some on the small table beside. She smiled. He was always overworking himself.

She settled down across him for a couple of minutes before he woke up.

Lelouch slowly sat up before taking the papers he had been reading. He looked at Villetta for a long minute before placing the papers on the table. Once more he decided to lay down. He was honestly tired. He needed a laptop. He needed to get things worked on soon. It was really troubling without any internet connection or even cellphone reception. "It is good to see you up, Villetta." He finally spoke in a calm tone.

"Thank you, and it is also good to see you in good health," Villetta said with a small smile.

"I am in good health because of you," Lelouch said. "Had you not moved as quickly as you did, we wouldn't be here. I would be dead."

Nunnally would have lost a brother. It would have been heartbreaking for his younger sister. She still had a brother because Villetta did her job in protecting him. His enemies would have laughed at his funeral. The vultures would have circled around Nunnally with the intentions of making her follow her brother and mother. But it was not to be. He was still alive. This incident had taught him a lesson though. Death was possible. One could die any moment. He was at war, if he was reckless, he would die prematurely.

"I was just doing my job as your guard, your Highness."

Lelouch turned his head to look at Villetta. She sounded way too modest. Well, she had her dreams and everything. "Yes, you were. But I must still thank you for saving me…" he said. "Jeremiah did tell me that you have desires to become a noble one day."

Villetta nodded her head. "My father would rather have me marry someone but I want to work for it."

"Ah, we did have this conversation before," Lelouch said in thought. "It is good to have dreams, Villetta. But don't ever be too ambitious. Don't aim too high. Move a relative pace and you will eventually get there. When you are dead, you can achieve nothing. Your dreams die with you."

"Are you suggesting that I saved you because of my dreams?"

"If I thought that I would not thank you. I would have just retained your services because you know your job. Your job is to protect me. I don't need to thank you when you actually do it," Lelouch said in a cold one. "Regardless, I know your reason is not what you question I suggest. That is why I thank you and actually happy to see you back on your feet. I was truly worried for your safety. To be able to talk to you like this does fill me with pleasure."

"I am happy to have put your mind at ease, Your Highness."

Lelouch nodded. "What I said, Villetta. I'm not suggesting anything but take those words to heart. I have dreams as well. There is a place I want to reach. But this experience has taught me to be mindful of my pace." He said. "I'm sure you are already asking about our current environment."

Villetta nodded, "what happened to our base?"

"Badly damaged. While we were away, some people came here and destroyed it as well as our communication tower. We have not been able to contact the island. But Sergeant Michael should be on his way back with necessary tools to fix communication lines." Lelouch paused for a moment before adding. "There were no casualties. But our supplies have yet to arrive. I had some men go to the nearby town to purchase some essentials but for more battles? We would be at a major disadvantage should we face the same number forces we have faced since we arrived. That is the situation."

"It seems a lot happened while I was unconscious," Villetta said after a couple of moments. "Will we be fine though?"

"Of course," Lelouch said confidently. "I wouldn't be lying here like this if I didn't think we would be fine. We did well in our first mission, we can't end it miserably."

Villetta nodded in agreement. As long as they were able to make it out alive – that was the best she could hope for. In this situation, it was something anyone could hope for. They have faced a remarkable situation. The fact that they were still here and waiting for reinforcements was in itself a massive achievement for them.

"Will we be going home after this?" Villetta asked.

"Most probably," Lelouch said. He did need to stay away from battle a little and handle other things. He still needed to ensure that his project with Lloyd was working well and the development of the Liberator was started. Lloyd had the technology. Lelouch just needed the money to make things work. "Are you missing someone from home? A lover perhaps?"

Villetta shook her head. She had no one like that. She has been so focused on duties and her dreams that relationships never took priority. Besides, she hadn't met anyone she liked. "I have no one."

Lelouch turned to face her once more with a raised eye brow. "I understand with Jeremiah but with you? It can't be that you don't have any suitors. Some men even here have taken a liking for you. I do believe you may have frightened some of them with your showing in our last battle," he finished with a smile.

Villetta smiled. "There was a competition," she said. "It isn't that I haven't been asked out. I have just never had the time. When I was in Area 11, I was focused on the Purist Faction's politics and now, I must always have eyes on you, as your guard…"

"I see," Lelouch said before closing his eyes. "I also have Jeremiah with me. If you ever need that personal space, please ask for it. I want happy soldiers following me. Sad people are suicidal."

Villetta fell silent for a couple of moments, thinking. When she glanced towards Lelouch once more, she realized he was already asleep. He must have barely slept through the night, she mused. Villetta laid on the couch and decided to sleep as well. She did need more rest to help her body recover.

 **Island**

"Is there something wrong, denka?"

Schneizel had a thoughtful look on his face. He was thinking deeply about something. He couldn't get hold of Lelouch. There was just no connection. It was either he was somewhere there was no connection; or the communications tower of his mobile base was no longer operational. But if the latter was the case, he would have sent him a message. But there was nothing. There was no message. Something must have happened.

"I can't get hold of Lelouch."

"He is not in the mobile base?"

Schneizel shook his head. "There is no connection at all. Network matters." He said.

"You don't think something happened? Do you?"

"Something happened," Schneizel said. "But I don't think Lelouch would get himself killed easily. The supplies I had sent to them were shot down. Something indeed happened to their base. But when in battle, Lelouch doesn't stay at the base. He goes to battle. If something had happened to him in battle, I would have been alerted."

"If something happened after he had returned?"

"That would be a problem," Schneizel said. "But if it was the EU, they would have said something about it. I haven't heard chatter about anything except for Lelouch winning the last battle. It does lead me to believe that something happened to his mobile base. If that is so, and they have no means of communication, it could be a problem because he told me they were running out of supplies."

"Reinforcements are only a day away from arriving," Kanon said. "Should we send a message to look for them?"

"We don't have their precise location. And we really don't want to alert the EU that something has happened. Naturally, Cornelia doesn't have to know. We will wait. My brother is resourceful. But we cannot wait for too long. In the meantime, we keep observing EU movements. It will tell us if they have done something."

 **Back in Portugal**

The security was tight. Even though the frames were of Britannia, their friends had pointed their weapons at them and told them to halt. It was not uncommon for enemy forces to get into friendly frames and use them for themselves to ambush their enemy. Had they done something wrong, it would have been friendly fire and that would have been demoralizing. Michael could understand why Lelouch would go this far though. They were far away from home and very close to their enemies. They had no way to call for help.

His journey had been longer than expected. But he had found working equipment within EU camps. It would have been disappointing if he came back with bad news after taking so long. Lelouch was called on his return and Prince seemed glad to see him.

"We were successful, My Lord," Sergeant Michael said. "We did meet some resistance from the forces that had remained, as you can see from the condition of our frames."

Lelouch was not bothered by that. He had just been focusing on the success part. If they succeeded, that was all that mattered for now at least. "I'm glad you were all able to return safely," he said with a smile. "Is everything going to work?"

"It should," Michael said.

Lelouch turned to Morris who had just walked towards them. "How long will it take for your team to get the tower working again?"

"A couple of hours," Lt. Morris said.

"Get to it. Let me know as soon as we are back online. And please don't leave our network channels open to the EU. We don't want them listening to our conversations."

"Of course, your Highness." Morris said.

"You may rest along with your team, Sergeant," Lelouch said before turning away from the group. He turned towards his mobile base. He was alone there. Villetta was sitting outside with Jeremiah. It would be getting dark soon. But he was not concerned about the darkness. Lelouch was concerned about the communications getting back on line.

He sat at the command center alone, just sitting on his chair without anyone coming in to say something. A couple of hours went by and finally, the screens started to blink. They could get the signal. It didn't take long for the men outside to get into a celebratory mood. They once again existed. Their presence had been robbed by the death of their equipment but now they were back online. Everything was back to the starting point.

A soldier came into the command center and informed him that all was done. They carried some tests before he ordered the man to send a message to the Island for Schneizel to contact him. The Prime Minister came back after a couple of minutes.

He had a smile on his lips as he spoke. "I was worried about you, brother. I had already prepared aircrafts to search for you along the borders."

There was much to lose for Schneizel in this anyway. He was the one who dragged him here and although Lelouch had won his battles, if something had happened to him because of an attack from behind, the Portuguese government would have been blamed and Britannia would have found a better excuse to invade the EU. Lelouch was not looking for the end of his life to be in that fashion. He would end once he has achieved his dream – at least that was the dream.

"We had an unfortunate incident that left us without any form of signal but we managed to work around the issue," Lelouch said without going into detail.

"Your surrounding is different. You are not in your mobile base, are you?" Although he asked, he could see it was not the case. His assumption had been right. Lelouch's mobile base was no longer operational.

Lelouch shook his head. "We were attacked by some soldiers coming in from the Towns. They took out the communication tower and my mobile base. I guess they wanted me dead thinking I was in there…"

"It would have certainly created a storm had something happened to you," Schneizel said. "Nevertheless, I am glad that nothing happened to you. The last time I heard of you was at the borders in the southern sides of Portugal. I couldn't even celebrate your victory because your fate remained unknown," Schneizel added, smiling. "But now I can celebrate."

"I have nothing to celebrate," Lelouch said with a stare.

"Ah, your supplies," Schneizel started in a measured tone. "There was a bit of an incident that occurred when I was trying to send them. Perhaps the root of the problem was the same people who attacked you."

"What incident?"

"The plane carrying your supplies was shot down before it could land. I didn't send anything more because I didn't want same thing to occur. When you disappeared, I turned my focus on finding you," Schneizel said. "But now there is not need to send them. The EU won't engage anymore. For now at least. Your men should join the reinforcements."

That made Lelouch sigh in relief. There would be no more battle. He could breathe now. You didn't take in too much of this at once. Besides, this was his first battle. It had gone well. He wanted to take this win and go home with it before something happens. It would be a pity if something were to take his win away from him.

"They have been for more than a year, are they going to be released? There have also been some casualties…"

"They will be released but their only path is through the reinforcements," Schneizel said. "Cornelia is almost done. I didn't tell her about your situation. She asked about it but I made something up. We will have to tell her because it will eventually come up," he said.

"I figured you wouldn't tell her," Lelouch said with a shake of his head. "Knowing her, she would have already flattened this country or directly attacked the EU accusing them of having taken her brother."

Schneizel smiled: that was without question and she would have done it without listening to orders. Even if orders came to search first, she would have ignored them. "That would have complicated things," he said.

"Indeed," Lelouch said. "How long?"

"There was some unexpected resistance but she said would deal with it within a week," Schneizel said. "But you are done. I will send a plane for you tomorrow. You will return to the Island. Your men will be transported back to Homeland within a week or so," the prime minister added.

No doubt Schneizel would not allow him to return to Pendragon that quickly. The fact that he was even returning to the Island just meant that there was still a game that he needed to play. He might have been put in military but it didn't mean that Schneizel could not use him. As long as he was royalty, the man could use him in his politics. It was no matter. It would give him an insight in the political world.

"I will wait upon that," he said.

"Anything else I should know," Schneizel asked curiously.

"Is there anything else you think I am not telling you?"

Schneizel just smiled. "I am not thinking of anything… I am just asking out of curiosity."

"There are a couple of things but we will talk in person. I do have to come to you tomorrow," Lelouch said with a shrug.

"Tomorrow it is then," Schneizel said before cutting off the line.

He would have told the Prime Minister of his near death experience but he decided against it. It was nothing to brag about. If he could hide it, Lelouch would do so. But he could not. Not when the man had filmed everything. The video was going to hit Britannian screens soon. And he would see how the nobles react to seeing his name being chanted.

It was ironic though. He who once proclaimed he would destroy Britannia was now fighting for Britannia. He was supporting its conquest, its superior complex. Yet, Lelouch did not feel like he was losing something. He had never cared for the world in general. But he still needed to make a perfect world for Nunnally. The environment has changed. The how has changed, but he would still do it.

 **The Following Day**

Major Albert stared as Villetta and Jeremiah prepared things in the truck. They were leaving as they came, just the three of them. Well, they had not come simply to see them die. They had come to lead them through a difficult situation and they succeeded. It was not clean, but given the odds, it was impossible for a clean one. Besides, this was war. Casualties occurred. Major Frederic's death was one that would sting his men. The old man was stubborn but he had been one of them. He had been with them for some time.

He really hoped that this would not be the last time he fights alongside Lelouch. Britannia was always fighting somewhere. They would be called for another battle soon; he really did hope when they do get called, Prince Lelouch would be in charge. No matter the circumstances or environment, they would make it through. The Eleventh Prince always had a plan. And he was ready to follow it.

The men were already gathered, waiting for the final words from the prince. Just like last time. But this time, he stood atop of a Gloucester. It's lance raised in a sign victory. Once Villetta and Jeremiah were done, they stood beside him.

"You look lonely already, Major," Jeremiah said to Albert with a smile on his lips.

Albert would have normally denied this. But they were parting ways. "It is going to be lonely. Usually, I would be hearing some words from Fredric. But he is no more. You were here. The place was a little tense at first, but we managed to get along."

Jeremiah slammed the man on his right shoulder. "Whenever you are in Pendragon, come see us at Aries Villa. His Highness will probably be playing politics but he will soon return to battle, and we will reunite in battle."

"I hope that is soon," Albert said.

"Don't you have a family?" Villetta asked. "You should at least be happy that you are able to go home and be with them."

"Family is troublesome. My parents don't approve of my choice in career. So I prefer to be here than home," Albert said before turning on a charming smile. "But I do hope that next time you will join us in the outside instead of always being beside the Prince."

Villetta suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. But she was saved from responding when Lelouch started talking.

"Major Albert!" Lelouch called.

"Yes sire!"

"Come here along with those two," Lelouch said. When they arrived, he started speaking once more. "Now hopefully, there is no missile pointed at my back. I don't think my heart will take another of those shocks…" he stated with a smile, right hand over his heart.

"You need not worry your Highness, we did a clean sweep. There should be no problems but if it does appear, Villetta will not be the one to jump to your rescue," Albert said before turning to face the soldiers. "Right, men!?"

"Yes Major. This time, it will be us!" The soldiers said.

Lelouch smiled and held up his hand for silence. "A soldier is supposed to follow orders. When a teacher comes to class in time and teaches his students to the best of his abilities, the students don't have to say thank you. No, he was hired to teach. Every one of you follows orders from commanding officers. You should not be thanked for following them, because that is your duty.

"But I feel I must thank you. I had no experience. I was just a teenage boy and yet you trusted me. You gave me your trust when I asked you. None of you rebelled. None of you tried to sabotage our plans." He held out his right hand, palm open. "Your lives were in my hands. The enemy could have crushed them. They could have taken them," he snapped his fingers. "But they did not. We went into battle and came out with victory. We did lose a few good men. We shall remember them when we head back home. But for now, let me thank you for following my commands. You brought victory to Britannia. We did not shame the people at home. But we have made them proud. We have brought glory to Britannia. And to that, Jeremiah…."

Jeremiah didn't need an explanation. "All Hail Britannia!"

"All Hail Britannia!"

"All Hail Britannia!"

Lelouch watched with a smile. Ah, how sickening. But he was happy. This was the start of his journey: The journey to revenge. To creating the perfect world he wanted. He would hear this often. He would even start it at times. What was a Britannian victory without the trade mark closure?

After all that, Lelouch took Michael to the truck. He held the file of the man he had requested and placed it on his lap. "You have a history with Intelligence…"

"Yes sire."

"I was impressed with your work during this campaign and I would like to have you work for me on a personal level. Of course, it is to use your Intelligence skills. You should understand how things work within the upper class. Regardless, even if you do not understand, it should not matter." Lelouch said in a serious tone. "What do you think?"

"That is a lot to think about…"

"That is fine. Your services are not needed immediately. When I need you, we will speak again," Lelouch said. No, he just wanted to do a thorough background of the man. He would have to ask Schneizel to help him with it. He could not trust these people simply because they followed his orders. This was a process and he would measure them to see if they can truly be trusted.

"You may tell them that I am ready to leave," Lelouch said.

It didn't take long for Major Albert to get the truck moving. The journey was a little silent compared when they first came. Many words had already been said. Lelouch was engrossed in his thoughts to even entertain what was happening. The stage was moving. The environment was changing. Politics was a different game, but he could not say no when Schneizel was asking. The man hadn't said anything, but he knew that it was coming.

"Major Albert," Lelouch said after they stepped out of the truck. The military plane was already waiting for them, ready to depart. "We will talk soon. I have your contact details."

"I will be expecting the call," Albert said with a smile. "Villetta, I hope you will be available when I come to Pendragon, I am not really familiar with the city. Perhaps you would be willing to show me around."

"Maybe," Villetta said calmly.

Lelouch just smiled and turned away from Albert. He walked towards the plane with both his subordinates following him. It was apparent that the Major had taken a liking to Villetta. How was she going to respond? No, she had responded. Most probably she didn't have any interest.

"Your Highness," a soldier greeted them as they neared arrived at the plane.

"Soldier," Lelouch nodded his head before following the soldier into the plane. He chose the seat by the window to be able to see the outside world as the plane flies. "There are potential threats, yes? The last plane was shot down by terrorists, are we safe for flying?"

"His Highness, Prince Schneizel has said that the Portuguese government will be watching us until we are clear," the soldier said.

"He places too much faith on them," Lelouch said with a slight shake of his head. "Well, I don't want to question my brother's measures in this case," he said before staring outside through the window as the plane started to move.

There was silence as the plane took the air but the moment he settled on autopilot, Jeremiah spoke. "My Lord," he started in a curious tone. "What were you discussing with Sergeant Michael?"

Lelouch glanced at the man for a moment. He was obviously curious. Just couldn't help himself from saying something. Lelouch shook his head. "I was enquiring about his services. As our profile grows, we will need more man power. For now, it is just the two of you, but we will have to grow our hands to manage certain things that will head our away and we will need to do other things."

Jeremiah nodded. "Can he be trusted?"

Lelouch shook his head. "We don't know that. We will find out eventually. Given my status, it would be dangerous to put someone in our team we do not trust." He didn't even put it past Schneizel to plant someone in his camp to keep tabs on him. Hell, Lelouch did think that there was someone who was reporting to Schneizel about everything that was happening in the base and in battle. He couldn't prove it, but it would be just like Schneizel to keep an eye on him.

 **Island**

Schneizel had a warm smile on his lips as Lelouch walked into his comfort area. His two guards were shown where they would be sleeping, he wanted to speak with his younger brother alone and play a game. A chess board was already prepared for them.

"You look worn out," Schneizel said as Lelouch sat on a chair just across him.

Lelouch glanced at the Prime Minister for a moment before staring at the board. He had missed a good round of chess. It was always something when playing with Schneizel. Victory was never assured. Not that he had ever won anyway. It was like he was playing for a draw. But Lelouch didn't want to enter into this game with that mindset. He wanted to win.

"I wasn't sleeping that often. There have been a couple of things to think about," Lelouch said before making his first move. He waited patiently for Schneizel to make his move before speaking once more. "Hopefully, I am able to rest while here."

"You have time to rest. I won't need you in the next couple of days," Schneizel said. "There are still certain things that we need to solve before we make our next move."

"So, I will be around here," Lelouch said calmly.

"Yes," Schneizel said. "How was your overall experience? Perhaps I should start by congratulating you on your performance. You did better than expected. I truly hope that in the next battle, we won't have such conditions. Regardless, I had always known that you would be a success."

Lelouch glanced at Schneizel for a moment before staring back at the play at hand. The man was still not easy. But he had come to understand something about Schneizel's nature. Lelouch really hoped that it would serve him well in the near future. For certain, they would end up in opposing sides in the near future. Their ideals truly differed. "I'm sure many people are disappointed back in Homeland."

"That is to be expected," Schneizel said. "Many people were throwing bets on your failure."

"You must have made a killing."

Schneizel stared at the board. Lelouch was playing cautiously today. The strategy was fundamentally still the same. While Lelouch played around with his king, perhaps he wanted to draw out his opponents into traps, today he was playing with his queen as if she was a pawn. "I wouldn't say that," Schneizel said after a couple of minutes of silence.

"The experience was good. Perhaps it was better that we came across such conditions. It prepares me for whatever happens when I am alone. No doubt there will be sabotage in the near future. Politics does get involved in military functions," Lelouch said in a measured tone. "I did nearly die…" he said before taking out his phone. He pressed a couple of buttons and handed it to Schneizel.

The Second Prince took the phone and watched the video. The last part was dramatic. He was amazed that Lelouch was very calm about the whole matter and hadn't even said anything before. He handed Lelouch his phone before making his move. "When you stay away and observe from afar, you guard against such incidents from happening."

"Had I stayed, I would have been injured since my mobile base was also attacked. But I have seen the dangers of front lines. I will not be making the same mistakes again. When unnecessary, I will not enter battle," Lelouch said.

Schneizel smiled. "I'm glad you have come to that decision," he said. "You have selected your guards well. They reacted quickly to the danger. With them around you, even I will feel safe that my brother is in good hands," the prince said.

"Our sister will surely be giving a different reaction."

"Indeed," Schneizel nodded. "It was best that she was not told of this…" he paused and glanced at Lelouch for a moment. "Are you planning on having that video seen by the public?"

"Seems like a good advocate for my image," Lelouch said calmly. "Don't you think?"

"I wouldn't show the last part, but we are different. I don't see the harm nevertheless. If anything, it shows that you work with people who will not hesitate to protect you in a moment of danger. That is raw footage that you hardly see," Schneizel said. "Yet, it does expose you to some dangers."

"Anything can be pointed at the fact that it was my first battle," Lelouch said with a shrug. "When does our sister return?"

"I will know tomorrow," Schneizel said.

Lelouch nodded. "Are you going to tell me why I am staying behind? Obviously it has to do with your talks with the EU… but I really don't see how that involves me."

Schneizel smiled. He was disappointed to learn that Lelouch would not be playing politics with him. But now he had a found a way to make his brother play politics even though he will be serving in military. "It does have to do with the EU. We really don't want a full scale war with them. I really don't want to end up taking everything by force. It will just give us more problems as we have in other areas."

"You mean the threat of terrorism," Lelouch said. "But diplomatic talks sometimes do work best. People are more cooperative when they have made a choice themselves without a gun pointed at them. They become easier to rule when you have an agreement with them. But when it is all force, there is resistance. We see this in the areas Britannia controls and it will likely happen in the EU. In its current state, Portugal will perhaps be the most civilized area under Britannia."

"Hopefully," Schneizel said with a nod. "We will discuss more about this once I have held talks with the EU. Once Cornelia returns, we will clear out what must be done."

"What does High Command want?"

"You'll know what High Command wants when we meet them. If we go somewhere with the EU, we will meet High Command."

"In what role will I be playing to meet High Command?"

Schneizel just smiled.

 **Five days later**

Raw coverage of what happened in the battlefield was always welcomed. But it was rarely ever broadcast. Britannia had a long history of reporting victories when they didn't happen. The tyrant nation would never tell its people that it had been soundly beaten and its forces had to turn back with tails between the legs. Even Charles would hang whoever makes such news. However, there have been some cases, with lines not controlled by the government that 'real news' was shown. If you wanted to really know what was happening, you didn't have to depend on Britannia reporters – they only reported what they wanted you to know and in the angle of their liking.

The raw material from his battle had done some rounds in the news already. Lelouch had watched several stations playing the clip. It had come from an anonymous source. Naturally, the source was him. While he was not the most loved person, it had to be shown and they had to praise it. It had been victory against the EU. It was not often that such a bruising defeat was dished out to the union.

All in all, Lelouch could return to Pendragon with a large smile on his lips because things were moving smoothly. It was only early days, but Lelouch was pleased with the progress he was seeing. He hadn't thought that his first military campaign would have such an outcome. He could thank Schneizel for this. But from now on, he didn't need to have the man hanging over his head. It would not take long for some hard heads to start twisting the story to say that the strategy was Schneizel's and he had only been following orders. Yes, this was going happen soon enough.

"You look pleased with yourself," Cornelia said as she walked into the room Lelouch occupied. The Prince was sitting on a chair, staring at a laptop, a chessboard placed on the right side with a content look on his face.

Lelouch glanced at his elder sister for a moment before closing the window he had been viewing. "Sister, you have returned," he said.

"With victory, of course," Cornelia said before sitting across Lelouch.

"As is expected from Britannia's Witch," Lelouch said with a smile. "I also returned with what a result I did not expect. Victory was an outcome I had to come out with but I didn't expect to be in the way it played out. So, yes, I am very pleased with myself."

"You almost died," Cornelia said with a stare.

"Indeed, sister," Lelouch said with a nod. "I almost met my end there. But we are soldiers; it would be naïve for us to think that we cannot face such circumstances when in battle. I have no plans of losing my life any time soon, but we have to expect that we will be in trouble one day. The important thing is preparedness to survive when it does occur," the eleventh prince said in a firm tone.

Cornelia stared at Lelouch for a long minute before sighing tiredly. If she hadn't already spoken to Schneizel about what had happened, she would have been lashing out at him. "I really don't want to lose you again, Lelouch. Euphy is very happy to know that the brother she loves is alive and she gets to be with him. Just don't do anything reckless."

Lelouch smiled. He was going to be doing more reckless stunts in the future, but he wasn't going to tell Cornelia that. "I wouldn't want to sadden our dear sister like that," he said. Not only that, but what would become of Nunnally if he died? What would that cruel bastard to do his crippled sister?

He could not afford to die while zi Britannia still lives.

 **End of chapter**

 **I have been told I need a beta. So, I'll ask: anyone willing to work on chapters for this story for me? If you are there, hopefully, please PM me.**

 **The Omnipresent Sage**


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